North Korea-fired missile lands in Japan's exclusive economic zone
Previous missile launch by North Korea, March 21, 2020. Jung Yeon-je / AFP
Text by: RFI Follow |
AFP
2 mins
North Korea fired an "
unidentified projectile
" on Thursday, March 24, 2022, the South Korean army announced, Pyongyang thus extending a series of numerous launches since the start of the year.
The North Korean missile fell in Japan's exclusive economic zone (EEZ), Tokyo authorities said.
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"
North Korea fired an unidentified projectile towards the east
," South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.
Shortly after, the Japanese Coast Guard issued a warning message to ships about what would be "
a ballistic missile
".
Information that Seoul confirmed in the morning, Thursday, saying that it was indeed an “
intercontinental ballistic missile
”.
The projectile fired by North Korea, which Japanese authorities also suspect to be an intercontinental ballistic missile, fell in the maritime exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of Japan, announced the Japanese Ministry of Defense.
“
Our analyzes indicate that the ballistic missile flew for 71 minutes and fell around 3:44
p.m. to the Makoto Oniki Defense, adding that it could be an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
"
Serious threat
"
“
Since the ballistic missile this time flew at an altitude of over 6,000 km, which was much higher than the Hwasong-15 ICBM [missile] which was launched in November 2017, it is believed that the one today is a new ICBM
,” he added.
He said Japan's Defense Ministry had not received any reports of damage to ships or planes, but called the launch a "
serious threat
" to Japan's security.
Since the start of this year, Pyongyang has conducted a
record number of weapons tests
, firing hypersonic missiles and medium-range ballistic missiles, both of which are banned.
According to the South Korean military, North Korea fired a ballistic missile last week, but the test ended in total failure.
And on Sunday, multiple rocket launchers appear to have taken place.
(with AFP)
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