Donald Trump suggests China 'will put a heavy move' on North Korea after missile launch

North Korea claims the launch was testing an intercontinental ballistic missile

Donald Trump has responded to North Korea’s latest ballistic missile test on Twitter, suggesting it could prompt a retaliatory move from China that would “end this nonsense once and for all”.

Following the news of the missile launch, the President tweeted: “North Korea just launched another missile. Does this guy have anything better to do with his life?

“Hard to believe that South Korea and Japan will put up with this much longer. Perhaps China will put a heavy move on North Korea and end this nonsense once and for all!”

The missile launched by North Korea on Monday was first reported as a single, land-based intermediate range ballistic missile that was tracked for 37 minutes before it landed in the Sea of Japan.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) said in a statement that the missile launch “did not pose a threat to North America”, adding that the weapon had been fired from North Korea’s Panghyon Airfield.

North Korea has since claimed the event was it test-launching its first intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

ICBMs are designed to transport nuclear warheads thousands of miles.

The country has previously conducted satellite launches that critics say were disguised tests of long-range missile technology.

South Korea’s president Moon Jae-in has since said the launch “may have been an intercontinental ballistic missile”, while a spokesman from the Chinese foreign ministry has called for “restraint” following North Korea’s claim.

If confirmed as an intercontinental ballistic missile, the move would be considered a game-changer by countries looking to check North Korea’s push for a nuclear-armed missile that can reach anywhere in the United States.

China’s ambassador to the UN has already warned that further escalation of tensions with North Korea would risk the situation getting out of control, claiming that “the consequences would be disastrous”.

Additional reporting by Associated Press