This article was originally posted by the Council on Foreign Relations.
The recent North Korean missile tests are primarily aimed at fulfilling Kim Jong-un’s objectives of new military capabilities rather than reordering President Joe Biden’s list of international priorities.
North Korea’s launch of a record number of missiles in January of 2022 was described by Secretary of State Antony Blinken as North Korea “trying to get attention.” But Kim Jong-un’s omission of references to diplomatic objectives in his review of North Korean priorities at the beginning of 2022 suggests that the country is not primarily aimed at reordering President Joe Biden’s list of international priorities. Instead, Kim is focused on fulfilling his own priority list of military capabilities announced a year ago at the January 2021 Eighth Workers’ Party Congress, and that he sees a pathway to further lock in North Korea’s status as a powerful nuclear state.
Kim’s military wish list includes several of the items tested in recent weeks, including hypersonic gliding flight warheads and maneuverable short-range missiles. Also on the list are the development of nuclear-capable, solid-fuel submarine-launched ballistic missiles and intercontinental ballistic missiles, the launch of a military reconnaissance satellite, and the development of tactical nuclear weapons and multi-warhead missiles.
As Kim moves down his checklist of objectives in pursuit of new military capabilities, it has been only a matter of time before North Korea’s missile testing would bump up against 2018 pledges of not conducting tests beyond short-range missiles. Those pledges were made in anticipation of Kim’s summit diplomacy with the leaders of China, South Korea, Russia, and the United States. Meanwhile, UN Security Council resolutions restrict North Korean testing of all ballistic missiles.
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Scott A. Snyder is a Senior Fellow for Korea Studies and Director of the Program on U.S.-Korea Policy.
