Pyongyang has tested 3 ballistic missiles since the beginning of the year (French-Archive)
South Korea said its northern neighbor fired what was suspected to be a medium-range ballistic missile into the sea off its eastern coast on Tuesday, while Japan denounced the move and said it affects peace and stability in the region.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that it had detected what appeared to be the launch of a medium-range ballistic missile from the North Korean capital, Pyongyang.
She indicated that the missile was launched at around seven o'clock in the morning, Tuesday, local time, that is, around ten o'clock in the evening, GMT, yesterday, Monday, and confirmed that it had strengthened monitoring and exchange of relevant information with the United States and Japan.
The South Korean army statement explained that the missile flew about 600 kilometers before falling into the sea, while the Japanese Ministry of Defense estimated that it traveled 650 kilometers and reached a maximum height of 100 kilometers.
The statement did not specify the exact type of missile, but North Korea is testing a new medium-range hypersonic missile with a solid-fuel engine.
For its part, Tokyo announced that it had detected a ballistic missile launched from North Korea, and said that the Japanese Coast Guard had asked ships to be careful and report any object it detected falling into the sea.
The official Japanese Broadcasting Corporation quoted unnamed government sources as saying that the missile "apparently fell in waters outside Japan's economic zone."
"provocative step"
In his comment on the event, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol described the move as provocative, and said that North Korea is trying to create an atmosphere of confusion in his country ahead of the elections that will be held this month.
He stressed that such a provocation would only lead to the unification of the South Korean people.
Japan also denounced the move, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in statements he made to the media that North Korea launched many ballistic missiles this year, and that these missile tests are unacceptable and constitute a threat to regional security.
The new missile test comes less than two weeks after official media in Pyongyang announced that the country's leader, Kim Jong Un, last March supervised a successful test of a solid-fuel engine used to power a new type of medium-range hypersonic missile, as part of developing The country's defense capacity.
This is the third test that Pyongyang has conducted on a ballistic missile since the beginning of the year, after testing last March a solid-fuel missile whose launch was supervised by the country's leader. Last January, it also launched a missile equipped with a hypersonic warhead that has great maneuverability.
Pyongyang announced last year that it had successfully tested its first solid-fueled intercontinental ballistic missile, and explained that the step was an important achievement in the field of developing its nuclear capabilities.
Solid-fueled ballistic missiles are more maneuverable and safer compared to those that use liquid fuel, according to experts.
Source: Al Jazeera + agencies