NORTH KOREA LAUNCHES MISSILE OVER NORTHERN JAPAN
NORTH KOREA LAUNCHES MISSILE OVER
NORTHERN JAPAN
If initial reports of long-range missile over US ally prove
true, the act will be regarded as more provocative than previous
short-range missile launches
North Korea has test
fired a missile over Japan in
an unprecedented act that is likely to further enflame tensions in the region,
Japan's government has confirmed.
It is the
latest act of provocation by the communist state since it fired missiles
into the Sea of Japan three days ago, following comments from President Donald Trump that he
would meet any threats from North Korea with "fire and fury".
If initial reports prove correct and a long-range missile has
been flown over the Japanese mainland, this will be regarded as a far more
provocative act than flying shorter-range weapons into the sea.
The Japanese government's J-Alert warning system advised people
in the area to take precautions, but public broadcaster NHK said there was no
sign of damage.
Japan's military did not attempt to shoot down the missile,
which passed over the country's territory at around 6:06 am. local time (21:06
GMT), reportedly flying 2,700 km (1678 miles).
The country's state media reports the missile broke into three
pieces off the coast of Hokkaido.
We will make utmost efforts to firmly protect the lives of the
people,” Mr Abe told reporters as he entered his office for emergency meetings
on the missile firing.
South Korea also said the North had fired an unidentified
projectile early on Tuesday from a region near its capital, Pyongyang,
eastwards towards the sea.
Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the South Korean and US
militaries were analysing the launch and did not immediately confirm how far
the projectile travelled and where it landed.
Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said North
Korea's latest missile launch was a threat that Tokyo would respond to
decisively.
"This ballistic missile launch appeared to fly over our
territory. It is an unprecedented, serious and grave threat to our
nation," Mr Suga told reporters.
He added that Japan will work closely with the US, South Korea
and other concerned nations to take a timely and appropriate response.
"It could endanger peace and security in the Asia-Pacific
region. It is also very dangerous and problematic in terms of the traffic
safety of planes and ships. The launch is an obvious violation of UN
resolutions. We cannot tolerate these repeated provocations by the North. We
condemn this in the strongest possible way.
The launch comes days after the North fired what was assessed as
three short-range ballistic missiles into the sea and a month after its second
flight test of an intercontinental ballistic missile, which analysts say could
reach deep into the US mainland when perfected.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un threatened to fire missiles into
the sea near the US Pacific territory of Guam and expressed anger over the
ongoing annual war games between the United States and South Korea. A missile
would need 3,500 km of range (2,175 miles) to hit Guam.
South Korean
and US forces are in the middle of their annual joint exercises,
with Pyongyang regularly complaining that these are an invasion rehearsal.
US and
Japanese servicemen have just concluded joint exercises in Hokkaido, Japan's
northernmost major island.
The Pentagon confirmed that the missile test was carried out
over the Tohuku region in the north.
"The
missile launched by North Korea flew over Japan," Pentagon spokesman US
Army Col. Rob Manning said. "We are still in the process of assessing this
launch."
A senior US
intelligence official told NBC this would be the first missile test to pass
over Japan on a high altitude trajectory. In 1998, North Korea fired a missile
through Japanese airspace.
The UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said on Twitter he
is "outraged'' by the "reckless provocation'' from the latest
missile launch.
The Japanese government is expected to be prepared to
ask the UN for assistance in dealing with the provocation from North
Korea.
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