Japanese Government: "North Korean Ballistic Missile Fell Within Japan's EEZ After 1 Hour Flight"

[Asia Economy Reporter Minyoung Kim] The Japanese government announced on the 18th at around 5:21 PM that a ballistic missile launched by North Korea from the west toward the East Sea fell at around 6:30 PM.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

A Japanese government official told the local public broadcaster NHK, "The missile fell inside Japan's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ)."

According to Kyodo News and NHK, Japan's Ministry of Defense estimated that the North Korean ballistic missile likely fell in the sea west of Oshima Island, Hokkaido.

The Japanese Ministry of Defense believes that North Korea fired at least one ballistic missile.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida instructed for the prompt and accurate provision of information, confirmation of the safety of aircraft and ships, and securing readiness for unexpected situations in relation to this incident. Japanese Deputy Defense Minister Ino Toshiro said, "We will devote all efforts to information gathering and analysis, as well as surveillance activities, to protect the lives and property of the people."

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff also announced that North Korea fired an unidentified ballistic missile. This ballistic missile launch by North Korea is the second provocation this year, occurring 49 days after firing a super-large multiple rocket launcher on New Year's Day.

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