North Korea launched a new ballistic missile Friday in the direction of the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, in response to South Korean military maneuvers in the city of Pohang.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff reported the short-range missile launch, which was fired shortly after the end of the annual Hoguk national defense training, a large-scale maneuvering exercise launched by the South Korean military on Oct. 17, Yonhap reported.
Prior to the missile launch, North Korea’s propaganda outlet ‘Echo’ denounced the defense training as «a reckless act of confrontation that increases military instability and danger on the Korean peninsula.»
This new launch by Pyongyang further escalates tensions in the region, after North Korea has in recent weeks launched several ballistic missiles in tests banned by UN Security Council resolutions, in response to U.S.-Korean military exercises it considers a rehearsal for invasion.
In fact, in the early hours of October 4, Pyongyang launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile that flew over Japanese territory to fall into the Pacific Ocean, outside Japanese airspace, an event that had not occurred since 2017.
The United States, as well as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), have shared their evidence that North Korea is «likely» to conduct a nuclear missile test, its first since 2017, after noting an escalation of tension in recent weeks.
