North Korea on Thursday launched a suspected ICBM into the sea off its east coast, militaries in South Korea and Japan said, in what would be the largest nuclear-armed state’s first full-fledged launch of missiles since 2017.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said they spotted the launch of an “unidentified projectile” from North Korea. The launch was believed to be a long-range missile, possibly an ICBM, launched high into space on an “elevated” trajectory, Yonhap news agency reported.
South Korea’s defense ministry did not immediately confirm whether the test involved an ICBM. North Korea has not tested such missiles at full range or capability since 2017.
The Japan Coast Guard also said the launch could be a ballistic missile, adding that the projectile was expected to land in Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) about 50 minutes after its launch was first reported.
On March 16, North Korea launched a suspected missile that appeared to explode over Pyongyang shortly after launch, the South Korean military said amid reports that the nuclear-armed North was attempting to test its largest-ever missile. Read the full story
The United States and South Korea have warned in recent weeks that North Korea may be preparing to test a full-range ICBM for the first time since 2017.
US officials have said at least two recent tests, on February 27 and March 5, used North Korea’s largest-ever ICBM, the Hwasong-17.
“The purpose of these tests, which did not demonstrate ICBM range, was likely to evaluate this new system before conducting a full-range test in the future, possibly disguised as a space launch,” a US official said at the time.
Pyongyang did not identify the missile system used in those launches, but said it is testing components for a reconnaissance satellite system. Leader Kim Jong Un said this month that North Korea will soon launch multiple satellites to monitor military movements of the United States and its allies.
Thursday’s launch would be at least the 13th ballistic missile test fired by North Korea this year, an unprecedented frequency condemned by the United States, South Korea and Japan.