South Korea said it successfully salvaged a large chunk of a rocket launched by North Korea, after 15 days of rescue operations.
Debris Salvaged
In a statement on Friday, South Korea’s Joint Chief of Staff (JCS) said that the military had successfully “salvaged debris believed to be part of the space launch” by North Korea “from the seabed about 75m deep in the waters 200 km southwest of Eocheong Island” on Thursday night.
The operation included “10 naval rescue ships, minesweepers, and dozens of deep-sea divers.” The JCS added that there had been “difficulties in lifting” the wreckage “due to cylindrical debris,” but the military had been successful.
The salvaged object will be transported to the Agency for Defence Development for joint analysis by South Korea and the US.
Meanwhile, the military will continue the operation “by deploying ships and aircraft to search for and salvage additional debris.”
NEW: South Korea salvaged the 2nd stage of North Korea's Chollima-1 SLV late Thursday, according to the country's military, and said it will conduct analysis on the rocket section. It comes after the DPRK failed to put its first military satellite into orbit on May 31. pic.twitter.com/dZlDUaE7Xc
— NK NEWS (@nknewsorg) June 16, 2023
US, South Korea, Japan Talks
Coinciding with this development, a readout by the White House yesterday said that US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan had met with his Japanese counterpart Akiba Takeo and South Korean counterpart Cho Tae-yong for trilateral security discussions in Tokyo on Thursday.
Sullivan commended the two Asian neighbours on the “historic steps taken” to strengthen bilateral ties, as their trilateral partnership is now “stronger and has more potential than ever before.”
They also discussed the North’s “illicit nuclear and missile programs and most recent provocations and identified next steps to strengthen their coordination.”
In the maritime realm, the three “discussed opportunities for coordination in the East China Sea and South China Sea and emphasised the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
Sullivan concluded by reiterating the US’ “ironclad commitment” to the two countries’ defence.
North Korea’s Recent Test
On Thursday, North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles shortly after warning of an “inevitable” response to the ongoing US-South Korea joint military drills.
Following this, for the first time since 2017, the US’ guided-missile nuclear submarine, USS Michigan, arrived in South Korea on Friday to participate in joint special warfare exercises aimed at improving responses to North Korean threats.