North Korean missile passes through Japanese islands for the first time in five years
Japanese government orders evacuation from Hokkaido, etc.
“An act that threatens the safety of residents, strongly condemned”
An intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) launched by North Korea on the 4th passed through the Japanese archipelago and fell into the Pacific Ocean.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff said on the 4th that it had detected a medium-range ballistic missile that was launched from the area of Mupyong-ri, Jagang Province, North Korea around 7:23 am on the 4th and passed over Japan to the east.
Military authorities are analyzing parameters such as range, altitude, and speed, and are maintaining a readiness posture while strengthening surveillance and vigilance.
Japanese authorities also confirmed that the missile had crossed the Japanese archipelago and landed in the Pacific Ocean. It is the first time in five years since 2017 that a missile launched by North Korea has passed through the Japanese archipelago.
Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno held an emergency press conference following the North Korean missile launch in the morning of the same day, and North Korea’s ballistic missile launch violates UN Security Council sanctions against North Korea. It was criticized for being intimidating.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida also told reporters at the prime minister’s residence on the morning of the same day, calling North Korea’s actions “violence” and “strongly condemning it.”
In addition, the Japanese government issued evacuation orders to residents of Hokkaido, the northernmost part of the archipelago and Aomori Prefecture, the northernmost part of Honshu, to “evacuate in buildings or underground.”
North Korea has launched its fifth ballistic missile in the last 10 days. On the 25th of last month, one short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) was fired from the Taecheon area in North Pyongan Province, two from the Pyongyang Sunan area on the 28th, two from the Suncheon area in South Pyongan Province on the 29th, and two missiles from the Pyongyang Sunan area on the 1st. did. That is, the missiles were fired once every two days. It is the ninth missile launch since the inauguration of the Yun Seok-yeol government.
Kim Soo-young, reporter for Hankyung.com [email protected]