Japan Cabinet Office: "Difficult to Counter North Korean Missiles with Existing Equipment... Efforts to Strengthen Air Defense Capabilities"

Kato Katsunobu, Chief Cabinet Secretary of Japan
Photo by EPA Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] On the 12th, the Japanese government announced that it will make every effort to strengthen its air defense capabilities, noting that it may be difficult to handle the new strategic weapons recently unveiled by North Korea at a military parade with existing equipment.

According to NHK and other broadcasts, Chief Cabinet Secretary Kato Katsunobu said at a regular briefing that regarding the new weapons unveiled by North Korea, "Generally speaking, I understand that some of the new missiles are considered difficult to counter with conventional equipment."

Chief Cabinet Secretary Kato said that the government is currently analyzing North Korea's missiles and added, "The government wants to firmly take steps to strengthen comprehensive missile defense capabilities to respond to increasingly diverse and complex threats." He continued, "We are always paying close attention to developments surrounding North Korea, including this case, and are collecting and analyzing information. We want to continue to cooperate closely with the United States and others, and devote all efforts to necessary information collection, analysis, vigilance, and surveillance."

Regarding the new intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs) that were unveiled, Kato said, "There is a possibility that new ICBMs and SLBMs were revealed," but when asked whether North Korea's unveiling of new missiles means it has effectively taken a step closer to becoming a nuclear-armed state, he replied, "Our country (Japan) does not recognize North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons."

Earlier, on the 10th, North Korea held an unprecedented midnight military parade to mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party and unveiled new ICBMs and SLBMs. Experts evaluated these new weapons as a culmination of North Korea's latest missile technology.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.