Asia-Pacific

North Korea fires long-range missile after latest condemnation of US

Pyongyang had threatened retaliation against what it said were recent US spy plane incursions

A display in Tokyo, Japan, shows news of North Korea's latest firing of a ballistic missile. Photograph: EPA

Wed Jul 12 2023 - 06:40

North Korea fired a long-range missile off its east coast on Wednesday.

The latest launch came as leaders of South Korea and Japan were set to meet on the sidelines of the Nato summit in Lithuania to discuss rising threats including the nuclear-armed North.

Pyongyang’s launch also comes after it threatened retaliation against what it said were recent US spy plane incursions over its territory.

It also condemned a recent visit to South Korea by an US nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine.

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Japan’s Coast Guard said what was believed to be a ballistic missile appeared to have landed as of midmorning. It had earlier predicted the projectile would fall outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) and around 550km (340 miles) east of the Korean peninsula.

The missile flew for 74 minutes to an altitude of 6,000km and range of 1,000km, TV Asahi reported, citing a Japanese defence official, in what would be the longest flight time for a North Korean missile.

Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida, who is in Lithuania to attend the Nato summit, ordered his staff to gather information and stay alert to prepare for unpredicted events.

He said the launch threatened the peace and stability of the region and the international community, and that Japan had lodged a protest through diplomatic channels in Beijing.

North Korea’s Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong-un, on Tuesday accused a US military spy plane of entering the country’s EEZ eight times, state media KCNA reported. – Reuters

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