North Korea fires ballistic missiles, warns of turning Pacific into ‘firing range’
- Japan’s coastguard said North Korea launched three projectiles that could be ballistic missiles just after 7am local time, all of which fell within minutes
- The launch comes just two days after North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into the sea off Japan’s west coast
North Korean leader Kim’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, issued a statement and warned against increased presence of US strategic assets on the Korean peninsula after the United States held joint air exercises bilaterally with South Korea and Japan on Sunday in response to the North’s ICBM launch.
“We are carefully examining the influence it would exert on the security of our state,” she said in the statement. “The frequency of using the Pacific as our firing range depends upon the US forces’ action character.”
“They will defend the fact that their scout planes didn’t fly at the time by saying that they were monitoring with so-called special means and methods under ‘close cooperation between intelligence authorities of South Korea and the US,” she said.
Kim added the North has “satisfactory” missile technology and capability, and “now will focus on increasing the quantity of their force.”