North Korea on Tuesday, the 27th of May, criticised the US plan for a futuristic missile shield called the “Golden Dome”, saying it could “turn space into a potential nuclear war field”, reports the British broadcaster BBC.
Pyongyang’s foreign ministry condemned the plan as “the height of self-satisfaction [and] arrogance”, state media reported.
It accused Washington of “devilish intent… to militarise space” and warned that the plan could trigger a “global nuclear and space arms race”.
North Korea regards Washington as its adversary and regularly condemns joint military exercises between the US and South Korea.
Pyongyang may see the “Golden Dome” as a threat that could “significantly weaken” its nuclear arsenal, Hong Min, a senior analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told AFP news agency.
North Korea passed a law declaring itself a nuclear weapons state in 2022 and has tested various ballistic and cruise missiles in recent years.
Earlier this year, it announced that it had test-fired a new intermediate-range ballistic missile with a hypersonic warhead that it said would “reliably restrain any rival in the Pacific region”.
NORTH KOREA JOINS CHINA AND RUSSIA IN CRITICISING THE US PRESIDENT’S PROPOSED 175 BILLION DOLLAR PROJECT AIMED AT COUNTERING THREATS FROM CHINA AND RUSSIA.
Beijing said last week that it was “seriously concerned” about the “Golden Dome”, which it said had “strong offensive features”.
“The US, pursuing a “US first” policy, is obsessed with seeking absolute security for itself,” China’s foreign ministry said. “It violates the principle that the security of all countries should not be threatened and undermines the global strategic balance and stability.”
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Tuesday also said the project undermines the foundations of strategic stability as it envisages the creation of a global missile defence system and called on the US to abandon plans to deploy weapons in space.
Many analysts believe that an update of the US’ limited defence systems is necessary, but some warn that the Golden Dome development process could face technical and political problems.
Foremost, its high price tag could take a large chunk out of the US defence budget.
An initial sum of 25 billion US dollars is already included in the new draft budget, although the government has estimated that it could cost 20 times more over decades.