The South Korean military defined the type of missile as a “KN-15 medium-range ballistic missile” or Pukguksong-2, the South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JSC) said in a statement to Yonhap. The launch was performed at about 6.42 am local time from the area near the North Korean seaside town of Sinpo in the South Hamgyong Province, it said. The missile covered the distance of about 60 km within nine minutes of its flight before it landed into the Sea of Japan, without incurring any damage and short of reaching Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
It is too early to say if the launch was a success or a failure, the military said.
The launch was also confirmed by the US Pacific Command, with spokesman Cmdr. Dave Benham saying in the aftermath of the firing that it is “fully committed” to cooperate with Japan and South Korea “to maintain security.”
Denouncing the launch as “a brute challenge to a number of decisions by the UN Security Council on the nuclear and missile provocations of North Korea,” the country’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Cho June-hyuck, noted that such blatant actions engender international peace and security.
Meanwhile, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has called the yet another missile test by North Korea “serious provocative actions in terms of security,” that run contrary to the international law, in particular, UN Security Council resolutions imposing sanctions on North Korea.
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