North Korea apparently fails to launch ballistic missile from submarine

North Korea has apparently failed to launch a ballistic missile from a submarine. The test carried out at sea saw debris in the water and there were no signs of the missile taking off, which suggests that Kim Jong-un's regime is yet to harness the advanced weapons technology.

"There is no identification of a missile taking flight and only fragments of a safety cover was observed so it's highly likely that the launch was a misfire," a South Korean government source was quoted as saying by Yonhap. The test is believed to have been carried out around 2.30 pm local time on 28 November in the East Sea between the Korean peninsula and Japan. South Korea's defence ministry has declined to comment on North Korea's launch.

In May, North Korea said it had successfully launched a ballistic missile from a submarine, which was worrying for South Korea and the US as Pyongyang is also said to be pursuing nuclear weapons technology. However, the authenticity of the launch could not be verified. Moreover, experts said the photographs of the launch were doctored, while South Korea said the missile flew about 150 metres away from the submarine.

The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) has imposed a ban on North Korea's nuclear and long-range missile programme. However, Pyongyang has defied the UNSC sanctions and is firm on harnessing the sophisticated weapons technology. Moreover, in September, North Korea claimed it could strike the US anytime with its nuclear weapons.

"North Korea is never going to stop. North Korea has already advertised its leader supervising the missile test," Kim Soo Am, a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. "Even if they have failed to successfully launch it today, it's telling the world it will keep going with weapons development," he added.

Even though the Korean conflict of 1950-53 ended in a truce, both the countries are still technically at war as a peace treaty was never signed.