Seoul: North Korea test-fired first short-range ballistic missile in 2023 toward the Sea of Japan on Sunday, Yonhap news agency reports, citing the South Korean military.
S Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the launch from the Ryongsong area in Pyongyang at 2:50 am, adding the missile flew some 400 kilometers before splashing into the sea.
The JCS denounced the North’s latest missile launch as an act of “significant provocation” that harms peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula but also in the international community, and a “clear” breach of UN Security Council resolutions.
“Our military will maintain a solid readiness posture based on capabilities to respond overwhelmingly to any North Korean provocations, “the JCS said in a text message sent to reporters.
The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command also said in a statement that the firing highlights the “destabilizing impact” of North Korea’s unlawful weapons programs.
Earlier in the day, the Japanese Defense Ministry said that North Korea test-fired three short-range ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan. The missiles flew over a distance of 350 kilometers (217 miles), reaching a maximum altitude of 100 kilometers (62 miles). All of the missiles landed outside of Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
