PHUKET /Thailand/, July 15. /TASS/. Washington and its allies provoke Pyongyang to carry out missile launches and make military preparations in response to the West’s actions, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko said on Saturday.

"Our stance is well-known and we have stated it again: all these things - both the launches and other military preparations - are a reaction to those actions that the United States and its allies take. They actually provoke North Korea to build up its defense might," the senior Russian diplomat said.

North Korea test-launched its Hwasong-18 solid-propellant intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on July 12. As the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported, the launch was personally directed by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. During the test-launch, the ICBM flew a distance of 1,001 km and fell in the Sea of Japan.

North Korea’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Kim Song said at a UN Security Council meeting on this issue on July 13 that missile test-launches manifested the republic’s right to self-defense, which is sealed in the UN Charter.

Since 2017, North Korea has test-launched 14 missiles with a range of 5,500 km or more. Most of such test-launches (seven) were conducted in 2022. This year, North Korea has carried out four such test-launches.