North Korea conducted its longest-ever missile launch off its east coast, as South Korean and Japanese officials prepare to meet on the sidelines of a NATO meeting to address threats including the nuclear-armed North.
The launch followed North Korea’s previous accusations, in which it accused American spy planes of violating airspace in its economic zones, condemned a recent visit to South Korea by an American nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine, and promised to take appropriate response.
According to Japan’s top cabinet secretary, Hirokazu Matusno, the missile flew for 74 minutes to an altitude of 6,000 km and a range of 1,000 km, marking the greatest flight period by a North Korean missile.
North Korea conducted its first solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test in April, one of roughly a dozen this year. Analysts believe the North’s ICBMs can reach targets anywhere in the United States, and the regime has likely built nuclear warheads small enough to fit on rockets.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, in Lithuania to attend the NATO summit, convened an emergency national security council meeting to discuss the launch and vowed to use the summit to call for strong international solidarity to confront such threats.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who is also in Lithuania, ordered his staff to gather information and stay alert to prepare for unpredicted events, according to the prime minister’s office.
Kishida and Yoon are expected to meet on Wednesday, and Matsuno said a summit was also planned with South Korea, Australia and New Zealand.
He said the launch threatened the peace and stability both of the region and the international community, and that Japan had lodged a protest through diplomatic channels in Beijing.
In addition to missile testing, the North failed to launch its first spy satellite using a new launch vehicle. UN Security Council resolutions prohibit North Korea from using ballistic missile technology, including for satellite launches.
North Korea has been sanctioned by the Security Council and a number of nations for its missile and nuclear weapons programs.
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