North Korea may have tested a short-range ballistic missile for the first time since 2017


North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reportedly oversaw a live-fire military exercise on Saturday that may have included North Korea's first short-range ballistic missile launch since 2017.
If the reports of the ballistic missile are true, it would violate United Nations resolutions imposing sanctions on North Korea. However, Bloomberg writes, it would "stop short of breaching" Kim's promise to President Trump that North Korea would refrain from testing longer-range missiles that could threaten the United States.
Experts argue that Kim is utilizing a "push-the-line" strategy to see how much leeway Trump allows before attempting to intervene again. The two leaders have had on-and-off negotiations over the past year surrounding the destruction of North Korea's nuclear arsenal, but talks stalled in February when they could not agree on proper concessions.
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North Korea also reportedly tested other "projectiles" on Friday, which caused its own stir. But Trump appeared undeterred and seemingly remains hopeful that a deal between the two nations will be reached. Tim O'Donnell
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Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
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