North Korea fires ballistic missile into east coast waters

South Korea’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launch occurred on Sunday morning, but did not provide further details. The Japanese Prime Minister’s Office also confirmed the launch.

The Japan Coast Guard said it was informed by the Defense Ministry that the suspected North Korean missile landed in waters between Japan and the Korean Peninsula, but did not say how close it was to the Japanese coast.

Japan’s NHK national television quoted unnamed government sources as saying the missile landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

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Sunday’s launch came three days after North Korea said it tested a “high-thrust, solid-fuel engine” for a new strategic weapon, a development that could allow it to possess a more mobile and more difficult ICBM arsenal. to detect that it may reach the continental United States.

In recent months, North Korea has tested a barrage of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles, including last month’s launch of its longer-range, more advanced liquid-fueled Hwasong-17 ICBM, designed to carry multiple warheads.

Some experts say North Korea would eventually use an expanded arsenal to seek sanctions relief and other concessions from the United States.

The exact status of North Korea’s nuclear strike capability remains under wraps, as all of its ICBM tests in recent years have been carried out at a steep angle to avoid neighboring countries.

Some experts speculate that North Korea already has operational nuclear missiles that can hit the entire United States, given the number of years it has devoted to its nuclear program. But others say the country is still years away from acquiring such weapons, saying it has yet to publicly demonstrate that it has a technology to protect the warheads from the harsh conditions of atmospheric re-entry.

The United States and South Korea have expanded their regular military exercises and pushed to further strengthen their combined defense capability against the advance of North Korea’s nuclear program. North Korea has threatened to use nuclear weapons preemptively in potential conflicts with the United States and South Korea, and the US military has warned the North that the use of nuclear weapons “will result in the end of that regime.”