NK defies UN ban by firing 2 missiles into seas
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NORTH Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into seas east off its coast yesterday, South Korea’s military said, defying a UN ban on the country testing such weapons.
The missiles, which appeared to be Scud class, were launched from an area on the east coast of the peninsula and flew about 500 kilometers before crashing into the water, an official for the Joint Chiefs of Staff said.
The test firings yesterday came three days after North Korea launched three short-range projectiles into the waters off its east coast, which flew about 190 kilometers and landed in the sea.
Such launches are routine. North Korea frequently test-fires short range multi-rocket launchers, which are not prohibited under UN sanctions on the isolated country.
But North Korea’s possession and testing of ballistic missiles such as Soviet-era Scuds breach the sanctions, and are seen to contribute to Pyongyang’s long-range missile program.
North Korea has so far conducted test firing of its ballistic missiles and rockets 11 times this year, including four involving ballistic missiles.
The country usually test-fires its short-range rockets and ballistic missiles amid annual US-South Korean military exercises as a form of protest, observers say.
Pyongyang routinely denounces the joint military exercises as getting for war.
North Korea said the launch was “part of its routine military exercise” and that it should not affect planned government talks between North Korea and Japan tomorrow in Beijing, a North Korean foreign ministry official was quoted as saying by Japanese media.
Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan wanted to raise the issue during the talks.
“We must make a firm demand toward North Korea that they follow the UN Security council resolution and other agreements.”
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