North Korea launched several short-range ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan (known as the East Sea in both Koreas) on Thursday, the South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement.
The Japanese Defense Ministry also echoed the new North Korean test.and noted that the projectiles fell in waters outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), without damaging Japanese ships.
South Korea’s JCS said “several short-range ballistic missiles fired from the Pyongyang area toward the East Sea were detected at around 7:10 a.m. (midnight in Spain)” and said the type of projectiles launched and their trajectory were being analyzed, along with information from U.S. and Japanese authorities.
“The North Korean missiles flew about 360 kilometers and fell into the East Sea”added the text he had access to Efe.
It is the first such launch since North Korea carried out a July 1 launch, when the regime claimed to have successfully tested a new tactical ballistic missile capable of carrying a large warhead.
The test comes after last Monday North Korean leader, Kim Jong Unwill urge continued improvement of the country’s nuclear capabilities to address the “serious threat” posed by the current regional environment, in his National Foundation Day speech.
Kim claimed that the bloc “led by the United States” and based on its nuclear weapons poses a “serious threat” to Pyongyang and that “the obvious conclusion is that the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (the country’s official name) nuclear force” and its ability to use it “need to be further refined.”
