Pyongyang
\nNorth Korea fired a ballistic missile off its east coast towards Japan on Wednesday, South Korea\u2019s joint chiefs of staff said, in a move that followed threats of retaliation for alleged US spy plane flights.
\nThe missile flew about 1,000km (621 miles) before crashing into the water, South Korea\u2019s military said. Japan\u2019s chief cabinet secretary said the missile came down about 250km west of Okushiri island in Japan\u2019s northernmost Hokkaido prefecture, after a flight taking 74 minutes that reached an altitude of more than 6,000km.
\nIt took place as the top US general met his South Korean and Japanese counterparts for a rare trilateral meeting in Hawaii. Colonel Dave Butler, a spokesman for Gen Mark Milley, told Reuters that the North Korean launch occurred at the conclusion of the meeting, which had been long planned.
\nWashington has been pressing the uneasy neighbours to work more closely to better counter rising threats from China and North Korea. Seoul and Tokyo have strained relations over disputes dating to Japan\u2019s 1910-45 occupation of Korea.
\nSome experts said North Korea likely tested its developmental, road-mobile Hwasong-18 ICBM, a type of solid-fuel weapon that is harder to detect and intercept than the North\u2019s other liquid-fuel ICBMs. The North Korean ruler, Kim Jong-un, previously called the Hwasong-18 his most powerful nuclear weapon.
\nSouth Korean and Japanese assessments said the missile was launched on a high angle, in an apparent attempt to avoid neighbouring countries.
\nThe launch is North Korea\u2019s 12th this year. In April the regime test-fired its first ever solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile, and at the end of May conducted a failed attempt to launch what it called its first-ever spy satellite on a new launch vehicle. South Korea said last week that it recovered the satellite wreckage from the ocean and it had \u201cno military utility as a reconnaissance satellite at all\u201d.
\nThe latest launch comes after North Korea made heated complaints in recent days over US military activities, accusing American spy planes of violating airspace in its economic zones and condemning a recent visit to South Korea by an American nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine.
\nKim Yo-jong, the influential sister of Kim Jong-un, on Monday threatened \u201cshocking\u201d consequences over US reconnaissance activity.
\nShe said the US spy plane flew over the North\u2019s eastern exclusive economic zone eight times in a day, and the North scrambled warplanes to chase it away.
\nThe US and South Korea dismissed the North\u2019s accusations and urged it to refrain from any acts or rhetoric that raise tensions.
\nNorth Korea has made numerous similar threats over alleged US reconnaissance activities, but its latest statements came amid heightened animosities over its barrage of missile tests this year.
\nUN security council resolutions ban North Korea\u2019s use of ballistic missile technology, including for satellite launches. The security council, as well as a number of countries, have imposed sanction on North Korea for its missile and nuclear weapons programmes.
\nAnalysts say commercial satellite imagery shows North Korea is expected to stage displays of military force, including a large parade, for a coming holiday on 27 July that commemorates its claim to victory in the 1950-53 Korean war against the US, South Korea and their allies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Pyongyang North Korea fired a ballistic missile off its east coast towards Japan on Wednesday, South Korea\u2019s joint chiefs of staff said, in a move that followed threats of retaliation for alleged US spy plane flights. The missile flew about 1,000km (621 miles) before crashing into the water, South Korea\u2019s military said. Japan\u2019s chief cabinet […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":342709,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-342697","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n