Seoul: North Korea on Thursday fired a ballistic missile that fell between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, continuing its weapons tests. In the wake of this incident, Japan had to ask residents of one of its islands to move to safer places as a precautionary measure. However, this order was later withdrawn. South Korea’s ‘Joint Chiefs of Staff’ said that the missile fired from near Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, fell between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. In a statement, this missile has been described as a medium and long-range weapon, but it has not been clarified how much distance the missile has covered.
Japan’s Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada told reporters that North Korea probably launched an intercontinental ballistic missile. He said the missile did not reach Japan’s exclusive economic zone. Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters he planned to convene a meeting of the National Security Council to discuss the launch. North Korea frequently tests missiles in the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. South Korea and Japan usually do not issue orders for their citizens to evacuate after North Korean launches, unless they believe that these weapons are coming towards their territories.
The Japanese government urged people on the northernmost island of Hokkaido to evacuate after Thursday’s launch, but later retracted the missile alert, saying it had analyzed the missile’s impact on Hokkaido. There is no chance of falling in. North Korea has fired nearly 100 missiles since the beginning of 2022, many of which are capable of carrying nuclear warheads.
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