Yonhap News Summary

The following is the second summary of major stories moved by Yonhap News Agency on Wednesday.

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(LEAD) N. Korea tests nuclear detonation device: presidential office

SEOUL -- North Korea has been testing a nuclear triggering device apparently in preparation for what would be the country's seventh nuclear test, a senior presidential official said Wednesday.

The experiments have been taking place at a location away from Punggye-ri, the site of all six North Korean nuclear tests to date, said Kim Tae-hyo, first deputy director of the National Security Office, without naming the place.

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(5th LD) N. Korea fires 3 ballistic missiles, including 1 suspected ICBM: S. Korean military

SEOUL -- North Korea fired three ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Wednesday, including an apparent intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), South Korea's military said, just a day after U.S. President Joe Biden wrapped up his Asia trip highlighting America's security commitment to Seoul and Tokyo.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the launches from the Sunan area in Pyongyang at around 6 a.m., 6:37 a.m. and 6:42 a.m., respectively, which marked the North's 17th show of force this year.

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Spy chief nominee says N. Korea apparently has no will to denuclearize on its own

SEOUL -- North Korea appears to have no intent on giving up its nuclear weapons on its own, South Korea's state intelligence chief nominee said Wednesday.

Kim Kyou-hyun, named to lead the National Intelligence Service, presented the view during his parliamentary confirmation hearing, just hours after Pyongyang fired three ballistic missiles into the East Sea amid concerns it may even carry out another nuclear test soon.

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(LEAD) Top S. Korean, U.S. diplomats condemn N.K missile launches in phone talks

SEOUL -- The top diplomats of South Korea and the United States strongly condemned North Korea's latest missile launches in their phone talks Wednesday, according to Seoul's foreign ministry.

Foreign Minister Park Jin and his American counterpart Antony Blinken agreed to cooperate closely in a push for a new U.N. Security Council resolution against Pyongyang, as they called the North's move a "grave provocation" that only leads to its isolation and threatens regional peace and stability, it added.

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Unification minister urges N. Korea to stop provocations, return to dialogue

SEOUL -- Unification Minister Kwon Young-se condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launch Wednesday and warned that it would face "strengthened deterrence" from Seoul and Washington.

Kwon said the North's firing of three missiles, including an apparent intercontinental ballistic missile, earlier in the day poses a grave threat to regional peace and security and called on the recalcitrant regime to change tack.

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S. Korean, U.S. defense chiefs stress need for strategic asset deployment in phone call

SEOUL -- The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States stressed the need for the deployment of America's strategic military assets here and the early resumption of a key deterrence dialogue during a phone call Wednesday, Seoul's defense ministry said.

Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup and his U.S. counterpart, Lloyd Austin, held the talks hours after North Korea fired three ballistic missiles into the East Sea, including an apparent intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

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Sullivan reaffirms U.S. commitment to defense of S. Korea after N. Korean missile launch

WASHINGTON -- U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan reaffirmed his country's "steadfast commitment" to the defense of South Korea in a call with his South Korean counterpart to discuss North Korea's latest missile launches, the White House said.

Sullivan and South Korean National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han also condemned North Korea's missile launches as destabilizing acts.

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S. Korea sets June 15 as 2nd launch date of homegrown space rocket

SEOUL -- South Korea on Wednesday set June 15 as the second launch date of its homegrown space rocket Nuri, eight months after the first launch failed to put a dummy satellite into orbit.

Nuri, also known as KSLV-II, is set to lift off from the Naro Space Center in the country's southern coastal village of Goheung between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m, though the exact time will be determined on that day, the Ministry of Science and ICT said.

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(LEAD) S. Korea not to lift Fukushima seafood import ban for CPTPP entry push: oceans minister

SEJONG -- South Korea's oceans minister said Wednesday that his country will not lift a ban on imports of seafood from Japan's Fukushima area for the sake of winning Japan's support for the country's push to join a major free trade agreement.

Seoul decided to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which involves 11 nations, including Japan and Australia, and has been working on due domestic procedures to submit an application.

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