The Japanese Armed Forces also announced the launch of the missile on Monday. According to the Japanese Ministry of Defense, the launched intercontinental ballistic missile has a flight capacity of 15,000 kilometers. Japanese Deputy Defense Minister Shingo Miyake said this means that this type of missile could end up anywhere in the United States.
The missile flew in the air for 73 minutes, one minute less than the ballistic missile North Korea launched in July. It fell into the Sea of Japan, west of Hokkaido Island, outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida held a National Security Council meeting to discuss the missile launch.
The launches follow a warning from South Korea and the United States that any nuclear attack by North Korea on either country would mean the end of the North Korean regime. South Korea and the United States, allies, held talks in Washington, DC, on Friday regarding their joint nuclear strategy towards North Korea. The isolated regime of Kim Jong Un condemned both plans to hold nuclear weapons exercises next year.
The United Nations Security Council has banned all activities carried out by North Korea using so-called ballistic missiles, which can be equipped with nuclear warheads. But Pyongyang refers to the right of self-defense.
