North Korea fires mid-range missile into Japanese waters
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NORTH Korea fired a ballistic missile directly into Japanese-controlled waters for the first time yesterday, drawing an outraged response from Tokyo and ramping up tensions with the United States and South Korea.
The US military said the North had actually launched two Rodong intermediate-range missiles simultaneously, but one appeared to have exploded on take-off.
The launches followed a North Korean threat of “physical action” over the planned deployment of a US anti-missile system in South Korea, and came just weeks before the start of large-scale, joint South Korea-US military exercises.
Japan said one missile had landed some 250 kilometers off its northern coast.
“It’s a serious threat against our country’s security,” Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told reporters. “This is an outrageous act that cannot be tolerated.”
The United States condemned what it called a clear violation of UN Security Council resolutions explicitly prohibiting North Korea’s use of ballistic missile technology.
“This provocation only serves to increase the international community’s resolve to counter (North Korea’s) prohibited activities,” said Pentagon spokesman Gary Ross.
US Strategic Command said the two missiles were launched from a site in western North Korea at around 7:50am.
“Initial indications reveal one of the missiles exploded immediately after launch, while the second was tracked over North Korea and into the Sea of Japan,” it said.
It was the first time a North Korean missile has been fired direct into Japanese waters.
Japan’s top government spokesman Yoshihide Suga slammed Pyongyang for providing no advance warning of yesterday’s test.
“From the perspective of the safety of aircraft and ships, it is an extremely problematic, dangerous act,” Suga said.
The Rodong is a scaled-up Scud variant with a maximum range of around 1,300 kilometers.
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