TOKYO, Oct 9 (Reuters) – North Korea fired two ballistic missiles early on Sunday, officials in neighboring countries said, the seventh such launch by Pyongyang in recent days that raised alarm widespread in Washington and its allies in Tokyo and Seoul.
Officials in South Korea’s capital have said the North’s increased missile launches could signal it is closer than ever to resuming nuclear tests for the first time since 2017, with preparations seen at its test site for months
Sunday’s two missiles reached an altitude of 100 km (60 miles) and covered 350 km (218 miles), Japan’s Minister of State for Defense Toshiro Ino told reporters.
Register now for FREE, unlimited access to Reuters.comRegister
The first was fired at about 1:47 am (1647 GMT) and the second about six minutes later.
They fell outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone and authorities were investigating what type they were, including the possibility they were submarine-launched ballistic missiles, he added.
The US military said it was consulting closely with allies and partners after the launches, which it said highlighted the “destabilizing impact” of North Korea’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.
Still, the U.S. assessed that the latest launches did not pose a threat to U.S. personnel or U.S. allies.
“The United States’ commitments to the defense of the Republic of Korea and Japan remain unwavering,” the Hawaii-based US Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement.
The latest missile launches from the Muncheon area on North Korea’s east coast are a “serious provocation” that harms peace, South Korean officials said.
On Tuesday, North Korea test-fired a ballistic missile farther than ever before, firing it over Japan for the first time in five years and prompting a warning to residents there to take cover.
Ino said Tokyo would not tolerate repeated actions by North Korea. The incident was the seventh such launch since September 25.
Japan’s Foreign Ministry said nuclear envoys from the United States, South Korea and Japan held a phone call and shared the view that the North’s ballistic missile launches threatened the peace and security of the region and the international community, as well as posing a risk to civil aviation.
North Korea, which has conducted missile and nuclear tests in defiance of UN sanctions, said on Saturday that its missile tests were to defend against direct US military threats and had not harmed the security of its neighbors.
“Our missile tests are a planned and normal self-defense measure to protect our country’s security and regional peace from direct US military threats,” state news agency KCNA quoted an administration spokesman as saying. of aviation
South Korea and the United States held joint naval exercises on Friday, a day after Seoul scrambled fighter jets in response to an apparent North Korean bombing drill.
The United States also announced new sanctions on Friday in response to North Korea’s latest missile launches.
Register now for FREE, unlimited access to Reuters.comRegister
Reporting by Nobuhiro Kubo and David Dolan in Tokyo, Phil Stewart in Washington; Additional reporting by Daniel Leussink; Editing by Leslie Adler and Clarence Fernandez
Our standards: the Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.