SEOUL: North Korea fired three ballistic missiles eastward on Wednesday, just a day after the end of US President Joe Biden’s visit to Asia.
The first was a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that flew some 360 kilometres at an altitude of 540 kilometres, the South Korean military’s general staff (JCS) said.
Missiles with the capability to travel more than 5,500 kilometres are counted as ICBMs.
It was not initially clear if North Korea had purposely limited the flight distance to several hundred kilometres. The other two missiles were deemed short-range ballistic missiles.
Pyongyang launched the three missiles in the direction of the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, from around the Sunan area in Pyongyang at around 6 am, 6:37 am and 6:42 am. Japan’s Defence Ministry also confirmed the launch of three missiles by North Korea, saying at least two were ballistic missiles and the third was being analysed, Kyodo reported. UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from testing ballistic missiles,which can carry a nuclear warhead.
The country has tested missiles several times since the beginning of this year, including an ICBM. The JCS said it was reinforcing monitoring and vigilance activities and maintaining a “full readiness posture” in close cooperation with the United States, Yonhap news agency reported.
The US Indo-Pacific Command said it was aware of the multiple launches and was “assessing and consulting closely with (its) allies and partners.”
“While this event does not pose an immediate threat to US personnel or territory, or to our allies, the missile launches highlight the destabilising impact of the DPRK’s illicit weapons programme,” the statement said, using the acronym for North Korea’s official name,the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
The White House had previously said that there was a “genuine possibility” that Pyongyang would carry out a missile test around the time of Biden’s visit to South Korea and Japan.
In addition, there were increasing signs of an imminent new nuclear test by North Korea.
According to the deputy director of the National Security Office in Seoul, Kim Tae Hyo, there are indications that the neighbouring country recently experimented several times with explosive devices for its seventh nuclear test.
It is unlikely that a test could take place in the next day or two, but “sometime after that it is likely,” Kim was quoted as saying by South Korean broadcasters. — dpa
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