[3rd Report] South Korea-US Joint Fire Response to North Korean Missile... One Hyunmoo Missile Fell Short

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The South Korean and U.S. military authorities conducted a joint surface-to-surface missile firing into the East Sea in response to North Korea's intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) provocation.

On the 5th, the Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that in this joint surface-to-surface missile firing, both the South Korean military and the U.S. Forces Korea each launched 2 ATACMS missiles, totaling 4 missiles, into the East Sea, precisely striking a simulated target. This demonstrated the joint forces' capability to respond to further provocations by North Korea.

The Joint Chiefs emphasized, "Regardless of where North Korea provokes, we maintain a constant surveillance posture and have the capability and readiness to neutralize the point of provocation." They added, "Our military is tracking and monitoring related developments in preparation for additional provocations by North Korea, maintaining a full readiness posture that guarantees overwhelming victory at all times."

According to the military, this is the fourth time that the South Korean and U.S. forces have conducted a missile firing in response to North Korean missile provocations. The ROK-US forces fired a total of 14 strike missiles (12 by South Korea and 2 by the U.S.) in March, May, and June as counter-firings.

Meanwhile, during the joint counter-firing conducted around 1 a.m. that day, the military also launched a Hyunmoo-2 ballistic missile, but an accident occurred where the missile flew abnormally immediately after launch and fell back within the base. The military is investigating the cause. So far, no casualties have been confirmed. The strong flash and loud noise caused by the missile falling alarmed residents in the Gangneung area, leading to a flood of inquiries to government offices and the media. However, the military did not even provide a notice that it was a 'training,' resulting in confusion throughout the night. Photos and videos showing flames that appeared to be explosions spread online.

North Korea launched one IRBM from the Mupeong-ri area in Jagang Province at around 7:23 a.m. the previous day, flying over the Japanese archipelago for about 4,500 km.

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