North Korea fires suspected ballistic missile toward Sea of Japan, second launch in a week
North Korea fired a suspected ballistic missile from its east coast toward the Sea of Japan on 12 August, its second such launch in less than a week, days before US-South Korea annual military drills are set to begin.
Launch detected from Wonsan
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that it detected the launch at 6:00 AM local time on Wednesday 12 August (Tuesday 23:00 Paris time) of a ballistic missile fired by North Korea from the Wonsan area toward the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan. Japan's Defense Ministry also alerted the public to the launch but did not confirm whether the weapon was ballistic. The ministry said the suspected projectile had already fallen into the waters.
Yonhap news agency, citing South Korea's military, reported that North Korea fired an unidentified projectile off its east coast. Bloomberg reported the projectile was launched from the Wonsan area and likely had already fallen.
Second launch in less than a week
The launch marks the second weapons test of this type by Pyongyang in less than a week. The previous test occurred last week, when South Korea, the United States and Japan detected the launch of a short-range ballistic missile from North Korea. That earlier test was the first known ballistic weapons test by the country since the end of June.
North Korea has not confirmed the latest reported launch. This is unusual for the regime, which typically releases details of weapons tests a day after they occur. The lack of confirmation was also noted in connection with last week's launch.
- Last known ballistic weapons test before the current series
- Short-range ballistic missile detected by South Korea, US and Japan
- Ballistic missile launched from Wonsan area toward Sea of Japan
- Ulchi Freedom Shield joint military drills between US and South Korea begin
Timing ahead of Ulchi Freedom Shield
The reported launch comes two days after South Korea and the United States announced they would begin their annual large-scale military drills next week. The exercise, called Ulchi Freedom Shield, is designed to strengthen readiness against North Korean threats.
North Korea considers the joint exercises preparation for an invasion of its territory. In the past, the regime has responded to large-scale South Korean-American military drills with weapons tests and aggressive rhetoric. The upcoming exercise is expected to provoke an angry response from Pyongyang, as have previous editions.
Regional reactions
Japan's Defense Ministry issued an alert about the launch but did not confirm the projectile was ballistic. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff identified the weapon as a ballistic missile in its statement. The missile was fired from the Wonsan region on North Korea's east coast toward the East Sea.
No damage or casualties have been reported. The projectile landed in the waters off the east coast, according to Japan's Defense Ministry.
