One day after the announcement, Pyongyang test-fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) off its east coast to demonstrate against the THAAD deployment decision.
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Japan’s defence ministry said the missile landed inside Japan’s exclusive economic zone, a 200-nautical-mile offshore area where Tokyo has sovereign rights for exploring and exploiting resources.
South Korean defense officials say it traveled about 30 kilometers (19 miles), shorter than the typical distance of a submarine-launched ballistic missile, which can fly at least 300 kilometers (186 miles).
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe immediately called the missile launch an “unforgivable act of violence toward Japan’s security” and convened a National Security Council meeting.
The South Korean military said that it will react resolutely to North Korea’s provocations that threaten the country’s security.
North Korea fired two mid-range ballistic missiles on Wednesday, South Korea’s military and USA authorities said. Japanese media reported it was the first North Korean missile that has splashed down in Japan’s EEZ.
However, U.S. Strategic Command issued a statement saying it detected what it believes was the simultaneous launch of two presumed No Dong intermediate range ballistic missiles.
“We remain prepared to work to respond to further DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] provocations, as well as to defend ourselves and our allies from any attack or provocation”, said State Department spokeswoman Anna Richey-Allen.
North Korea also has ratcheted up its propaganda campaign ahead of annual U.S.
In the recent past, North Korea has boasted of having breakthroughs in its quest of having long range missiles. The U.S. anti-missile system is created to shoot down missiles at a much higher altitude of 40-150 km.
A Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptor is launched during a successful flight test.
Its last missile test was less than three weeks ago, when it launched three short-range missiles.
It was the first time a North Korean missile has been fired direct into Japanese waters.
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E-commerce exports to China, South Korea’s largest trading partner, amounted to 373.2 billion won in the second quarter, accounting for 75 percent of the total. North Korea typically protests against the drills, which it says are a rehearsal for invasion. The North has fired off ballistic missiles while claiming that it had succeeded in developing a nuclear warhead small enough to be put on a missile.
