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North Korea fired a ballistic missile into the East Sea at this sensitive time, 10 days before the presidential election after Russia invaded Ukraine.

It looks like the semi-medium-range Pukguksong-2 that was test-fired several times five years ago, but the government expressed deep concerns and serious regret.



This is Kim Tae-hoon, a defense reporter specializing in defense.



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Today (27th) around 7:52 am, a ballistic missile rose from the Sunan area of ​​Pyongyang and fell into the East Sea.



It has been 28 days since the mid-range Hwasong-12 was launched on the 30th of last month, and this is the 8th armed protest this year.



The Joint Chiefs of Staff said it was detected at a maximum altitude of 620 km and a flight distance of 300 km.



[Kim Jun-rak / Chief of Public Affairs Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff: Detailed specifications are under detailed analysis by South Korean and US intelligence authorities.

Our military is tracking and monitoring related trends in preparation for additional launches...

.]



It is a kind of high-angle launch that has a high maximum altitude compared to its flight range.



Pukguksong-2 is estimated to have a flight range of 2,000 km when normally launched, and is the longest-range missile among solid fuel-based missiles capable of rapid launch.



The Pukguksong-2 launch, which can hit even U.S. forces in Japan, is also interpreted as an intention to increase negotiating power in the future by putting pressure on the U.S., which is not in a recession due to the Ukraine crisis.



[Park Won-gon/Professor of North Korean Studies at Ewha Womans University: Because the Beijing Olympics ended and the Ukraine incident (cause) was ultimately defined as US imperialistic behavior, there is a very high possibility that North Korea will continue to conduct missile provocations according to its existing plans.



The Blue House held an emergency meeting of the Standing Committee of the National Security Council, and expressed deep concern and grave regret without defining this launch as a provocation

.



With a statement condemning the launch, the US military urged North Korea not to create further unrest.



(Video editing: Kim Ho-jin, CG: Seo Seung-hyun)