NoKor Fires Missile Over Japan And Tokyo Is Furious

North Korea has reportedly launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile over northern Japan for the first time in five years, prompting the government to urge people to shelter from falling debris, in an apparent escalation of recent weapons tests by Kim Jong-un’s regime, Justin McCurry reported for the UK edition of The Guardian.

Photo Insert: South Korea’s President, Yoon Suk-yeol said the missile had flown about 4,000 km, putting the US Pacific territory of Guam within striking distance.

Japan’s Kyodo News agency said the government had activated its J-Alert system on Tuesday morning for residents in the northernmost main island of Hokkaido and the country’s north-eastern Aomori prefecture. Train services were temporarily halted in the region, media reports said.

“North Korea appears to have launched a missile. Please evacuate into buildings or underground,” the alert read.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida called North Korea’s actions “outrageous”, and said the government would continue to gather and analyze information. Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said Japan would examine all options, including counterattack capabilities, as it looks to strengthen its defenses in the face of repeated missile launches from North Korea.

South Korea’s President, Yoon Suk-yeol, warned of “resolute” response after the launch, the Yonhap news agency reported. Yoon said the missile had flown about 4,000 km, Yonhap added. That range puts the US Pacific territory of Guam within striking distance.

The South’s unification ministry, which oversees cross-border issues, said the North was “unresponsive” on the inter-Korean hotline. Yoon promised a stern response from South Korea and the international community to the North’s “reckless nuclear provocations”, while the South’s national security council said Pyongyang’s provocations would “only strengthen security cooperation with the US,” the South’s main ally.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the projectile appeared have been an intermediate-range ballistic missile launched from North Korea’s Jagang province.

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