It hadn't happened since 2017, at the height of tensions between Washington and Pyongyang.

North Korea fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) on Tuesday that flew over Japan, leading Tokyo to activate its warning system and ask residents of certain regions to take shelter.

In response to the Pyongyang fire, South Korean and U.S. warplanes conducted precision strike drills on Tuesday, Seoul said, with two South Korean warplanes dropping bombs on a virtual target in the Yellow Sea. Korean F-15K.

A new distance record

These exercises aimed to demonstrate their ability "to conduct a precision strike on [the sites at] the origin of the provocations", described the joint staff of Seoul.

About 28,500 American soldiers are present in South Korea to help protect them against the North.

According to Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada, the device used by Pyongyang could be a Hwasong-12 missile, used by the regime the last two times a missile flew over Japan.

If so, this shot would mark a new distance record, Tokyo estimating it at around 4,500 km.

North Korea, which has nuclear weapons, has this year intensified its plans to modernize its armaments.

An “irreversible” nuclear power

In particular, it launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) for the first time since 2017 and reviewed its legislation to make its status as a nuclear power “irreversible”.

Last week, it fired four short-range ballistic missiles.

The firings came as Seoul, Tokyo and Washington on Sept. 30 conducted trilateral anti-submarine drills for the first time in five years, days after U.S. and South Korean naval forces conducted large-scale maneuvers. wide off the peninsula.

“A significant escalation”

North Korea, which is subject to UN sanctions for its weapons programs, generally seeks to maximize the geopolitical impact of its tests by choosing the moment that seems most opportune.

"If Pyongyang fired a missile over Japan, it could represent a significant escalation from its recent provocations," said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul.

"North Korea always starts with a low-level provocation and gradually raises the level to attract global media attention," said Go Myong-hyun, a researcher at the Asan Institute for Policy studies.

“By launching the missile over Japan, they show that their nuclear threat is not just aimed at South Korea.

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