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North Korea test-fired a suspected short-range ballistic missile, adding to its barrage of launches in the past month that included two rockets designed to deliver a nuclear warhead to the US mainland.
The missile was fired towards waters to the east of the Korean peninsula, Yonhap News reported, citing South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. It flew for about 800 kilometres before falling into the sea outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone, Japan’s Vice Defense Minister Toshiro Ino said in a televised media briefing. It may have flown on an irregular trajectory and a detailed analysis is underway, Ino added.
Kim Gunn, South Korea’s Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs, held a conference call with his US and Japan counterparts Sung Kim and Takehiro Funakoshi to discuss the latest North Korean provocation. The three officials condemned the North, calling its actions a threat to peace and stability that clearly violates UN Security Council resolutions, South Korea’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
The US and South Korea conducted a joint aerial drill over the Korean peninsula involving a B-1B bomber and fighter jets on Sunday, South Korea’s defense ministry said in a statement following North Korea’s missile launch.
North Korea had already shot 12 ballistic missiles since February 18 this year that included two ICBMs and what appeared to be a new close-range ballistic missile designed to hit US bases in South Korea.