North Korea says ICBM launch was a 'warning'

North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile this week as a warning against continued US-South Korean military drills, state media said Friday.

The missile, launched Thursday, was intended to “give a stronger warning to the enemies intentionally escalating the tension,” according to Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

US-SOUTH KOREA DRILLS DETER NORTH KOREA, PENTAGON CLAIMS HOURS AFTER NORTH KOREA LAUNCHES ICBM

A tv screen at Yongsan railway station shows a news bulletin about North Korea’s long-range ballistic missile launch, March 16, 2023. Kim Jae-Hwan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

It was the second ICBM launched by North Korea this year, and was fired just hours before South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was scheduled to meet with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

The aggressive escalation brings attention to US messaging on the North Korean issue.

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In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, with his daughter, inspects what it says is an artillery drill at an undisclosed location in North Korea, Thursday, March 9, 2023. Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP

The Department of Defense claimed Thursday its frequent joint military exercises with South Korea continues to deter North Korean attacks.

“I think what’s important for people to understand is, one, deterrence continues to work,” Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder told reporters at a daily Department of Defense press briefing.

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People stand near a television showing a news broadcast with file footage of a North Korean missile test, at a railway station in Seoul on March 14, 2023. ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP via Getty Images

“Despite launching missiles into the ocean, North Korea is not attacking, nor should they, and that the United States, Japan, South Korea and other allies and partners in the region will continue to work together to expand that deterrence and to keep our countries safe,” Ryder stated.