North Korea launched a suspected intermediate-range ballistic missile over the waters near its eastern coast on Tuesday, as reported by South Korea’s military.
As per South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, the missile was fired in an area near North Korea’s capital, Pyongyang. The Associated Press reported.. This covers a distance of about 600 kilometers (372 miles) before landing in the sea between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.
Lee Sung Joon, the spokesperson for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, mentioned that the launch was likely a follow-up to a previous test in March of a solid-fuel engine designed for a new intermediate-range hypersonic missile that North Korea has been developing, as per the AP.
Experts say that if North Korea can successfully develop the missile, it could potentially reach the U.S. Pacific military hub of Guam and beyond.
Japan’s Defense Ministry stated in a press release that North Korea launched a ballistic missile early Tuesday morning, which flew over 650 kilometers and reached an altitude of about 100 kilometers before landing in the Sea of Japan.
Japan’s Defense Ministry reported on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, that its head, Minoru Kihara, met Tuesday with Gen. Charles Flynn, Commanding General of U.S. Army Pacific, and discussed “regional affairs including [North Korea’s] ballistic missile launch and measures to enhance the Alliance capabilities to deter and respond.”
Last month, North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un ordered his troops to get ready for war during an exercise, as the U.S. and South Korea were finishing their own large-scale military exercises.
