There is no denying that the dainty despot of North Korea is a piece of work, and, honestly, that may be putting it lightly.
Kim Jong Un is a certified tyrant, scooping gluttonous handfuls of his nation’s profit into his own ample gullet, feasting during their famine, eating foie gras while his citizens forage for grass to eat in Pyongyang’s public parks.
And, every so often, North Korea’s dictatorial ditz decides to pop off a missile or two to remind the world just how much of a wildcard he really is.
Nuclear-armed North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan for the first time in five years on Tuesday, prompting a warning for residents to take cover and a temporary suspension of train operations in northern Japan.
The Japanese government warned citizens to take cover as the missile appeared to have flown over and past its territory before falling into the Pacific Ocean.
It had been a minute since Japan was the focus of North Korea’s aggression.
It was the first North Korean missile to follow such a trajectory since 2017, and Tokyo said its 4,600 km (2,850 miles) range may have been the longest distance travelled for a North Korean test flight, which are more often “lofted” higher into space to avoid flying over neighbouring countries.
North Korea has been a rather consistent nuisance on the world’s stage for some time, but this test comes at a time in which the global order is beginning to shiver, and when any errant aggression could topple the whole house of cards…for good.
