North Korea Ballistic Missile Launch 2026: Provocation Before Lee-Xi Summit

Just hours before a high-stakes diplomatic mission to Beijing, Pyongyang's missiles shattered the New Year's silence. North Korea fired multiple ballistic missiles into the East Sea on January 4, 2026, marking its first major weapons test of the year. The timing is seen as a direct challenge to President Lee Jae Myung's upcoming summit with Chinese leadership.

900km Flight: Details of North Korea Ballistic Missile Launch 2026

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) detected the launches from the Pyongyang area at approximately 7:50 a.m. The missiles covered a distance of roughly 900 kilometers before plunging into the sea. In response, the Office of National Security at Cheong Wa Dae convened an emergency meeting led by Deputy Adviser Lim Jong-deuk. Officials condemned the act as a blatant violation of UN Security Council resolutions, urging the North to halt its provocative behavior immediately.

Geopolitical Overlap: Trump, Venezuela, and the Beijing Summit

The launch doesn't just impact inter-Korean ties; it's tangled in a complex global web. It follows U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement regarding the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro in a massive military operation. As President Lee prepares to meet Xi Jinping to seek support for denuclearization, Kim Jong-un appears to be flexing military muscle to ensure North Korea remains a central priority on the global stage ahead of its 9th Party Congress.