The missile was test-fired from near Eunyul in southwestern South Hwanghae Province at 7:50 a.m., South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said, adding that it is analyzing its trajectory.
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It cites North Korea’s recent technological advances and fears Pyongyang might have achieved the ability to miniaturise atomic weapons and develop warheads.
North Korea is expected to perform more weapons launches in coming weeks to protest annual U.S.-South Korean military drills that begin later this month.
The Korean government on Monday slammed North Korea’s latest hacking into the emails of South Korea’s diplomats and security-related officials as a “grave provocation”. North Korea called the system a provocation that it says is only aimed at bolstering USA military hegemony in the region.
South Korea has lost and will lose much of its diplomatic clout in Northeast Asia, which it needs to deal with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)’s nuclear issue, as Seoul agreed with Washington to deploy a USA missile defense system on its soil, a former South Korean unification minister said Monday.
“The simultaneous launch of two presumed No Dong intermediate range ballistic missiles occurred near the western city of Hwangju”, it said.
In addition, South Korea believes that North Korea operates a 6,000-strong special hacker unit with the aim to disrupt South’s government and military operations.
To better defend against North Korea’s increasing missile capabilities, Washington and Seoul plan to deploy an advanced missile defense shield in South Korea.
A spokesman for South Korea’s defense ministry said the latest missile traveled around 600 miles after it was sacked from a base in the southwest of North Korea.
Japan’s defence minister Gen Nakatani told reporters the missile was estimated to have fallen into Tokyo’s exclusive economic zone 250 kilometres off its northern coast at 8.05 am on Wednesday (2305 GMT on Tuesday).
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“North Korea, whose provocative acts are threatening the peace and stability of the Korean peninsula and the global community, will be faced with more powerful and thorough sanctions and pressure from the worldwide community and our country”.
