The Japanese Defense Ministry said the newly launched ballistic missile by North Korea was still airborne and might land in waters of Japan’s special economic zone (SEZ), regarding 210 kilometers west of the northern island of Hokkaido.
Japanese government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno said Friday that the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) of North Korea launched today flew regarding 1,000 kilometers, reaching a peak of regarding 6,000 km before falling inside Japan’s special economic zone (SEZ).
“We are analyzing the details, but we assume that the missile flew regarding 1,000 kilometers at a maximum altitude of 6,000 km before falling at 11:23 (22:23 Chile) regarding 200 kilometers west of the island of Oshima (Hokkaido). )”, said Matsuno.
Matsuno said that planes and ships in the area had been informed, although they do not know at the moment if any damage was done, adding that “the frequent missile launches by Pyongyang threaten the peace and security of Japan and the entire region.” and the international community, so they cannot be allowed”.
Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said the missile would have flown for regarding 69 minutes, since its launch shortly following 10:00 local time (1:00 GMT), and that, according to estimates, this type of projectile might fly up to 15,000 kilometers away and reach US territory.
For its part, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) later offered similar data in a statement, indicating that the ICBM flew 1,000 kilometers reaching an apogee of 6,100 km and a speed of Mach 22 (which is equivalent to breaking 22 times the speed of sound) and that “the specific specifications are being carefully analyzed by the intelligence authorities of the Republic of Korea (official name of South Korea) and the US.”
Both Tokyo and Seoul detected an apparently ballistic missile launching to the east this morning.
The South Korean JCS has reported that the launch was carried out at around 10:15 (9:15 p.m. in Chile) in the Sunan area, where the Pyongyang International Airport is located, a place chosen by the regime to also launch ICBMs in February, March and on November 3, although two of the launches were unsuccessful.
Today’s launch is in addition to the thirty projectiles, a record number, that Pyongyang fired in early November in response to major air maneuvers by Seoul and Washingtonincluding another ICBM that apparently failed and crashed prematurely in the waters of the Sea of Japan.
The tension on the peninsula is reaching unprecedented levels due to the repeated North Korean weapons tests, the maneuvers of the allies and the possibility that, as indicated by satellites, the Kim Jong-un regime is already ready to carry out its first test. nuclear since 2017.
