The launch was Pyongyang’s seventh weapons test in a two-week period amid US-South Korean military exercises.
North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles toward its eastern seaboard, the latest in a weapons test after Pyongyang warned against redeploying the aircraft carrier because new rehearsal round with Korean warships.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that two missiles were detected early Sunday morning from the coastal city of Munchon, in eastern North Korea. Both missiles reached an altitude of 100km (60 miles) and a range of 350 kilometers (217 miles), Japanese Defense Minister Toshiro Ino told reporters.
The South Korean military has increased its surveillance posture and maintained its readiness to coordinate closely with the United States, it said.
The Japanese government says North Korea has fired a possible ballistic missile.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has instructed officials to collect and analyze information and ensure the safety of planes and ships around the country.
The Japan Coast Guard said it warned ships offshore of falling objects and urged them to stay away. Ino said Tokyo will not tolerate North Korea’s repeated actions.
The launch, the seventh round of the North weapon testing for two weeks, hours after the United States and South Korea concluded a new naval exercise off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula.
The exercise involved the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and its strike group, which returned to the area after North Korea fired a powerful missile at Japan last week. to protest the combat group’s previous exercise with South Korea.
‘Legal response’
On Saturday, North Korea’s Defense Ministry warned Regan’s redeployment was causing “a significant negative flow” to regional security.
It called the recent missile tests a “legitimate response” to fearsome military exercises between its adversaries.
“Our missile tests are a routine self-defence measure, planned to protect our country’s security and regional peace from direct US military threats,” he said. State media KCNA quoted a spokesman for the aviation regulator as saying.
North Korea cares about US-South Korea military exercises as an invasion maneuver and is particularly sensitive if such maneuvers involve strategic U.S. assets such as aircraft carriers.
North Korea believes it is forced to pursue its nuclear weapons program in response to US nuclear threats.
US and South Korean officials have repeatedly said they have no intention of attacking North Korea.
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North Korea’s latest launch adds to the record-breaking pace of weapons tests this year.
These include a nuclear-capable missile, which flew over Japan for the first time in five years, issued a warning to residents there to hide, and displayed range to strike the territory of Guam in the Pacific. American Ocean and more.
Earlier this year, North Korea tested other nuclear-capable ballistic missiles that placed the US mainland and its allies South Korea and Japan within long ranges.
North Korea’s test shows that leader Kim Jong Un has no intention of resuming diplomacy with the US and wants to focus on expanding his arsenal.
But some analysts say Kim will ultimately aim to use his advanced nuclear program to win bigger concessions from outside, such as recognition of North Korea as a nuclear state. legal person, which Kim believes is essential in lifting UN sanctions against his country.
South Korean officials recently said North Korea is also preparing to test a new liquid-fueled intercontinental ballistic missile and a submarine-launched ballistic missile while maintaining readiness for a nuclear test. first underground since 2017.
