North Korea fired several unspecified ballistic missiles toward the east coast, mostly likely from Pyongyang, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff and The Japanese Ministry of Defense said on Thursday.
The launches follow joint South Korean and US missile drills and the return of a US aircraft carrier to the region in response to the North's recent missile tests.
The Japan Coast Guard announced at 6:04 AM and 6:19 AM JST that North Korea had launched possible ballistic missiles toward Japan, according to The Japan News.
The Japanese Ministry of Defense reported that another ballistic missile launched by North Korea apparently fell outside the country's economic waters in the Pacific Ocean, with no known damage so far. The government announced an emergency meeting.
“It is completely unacceptable. We are now confirming the details,” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said during a press conference shortly after.
“This is the sixth time in the short period just counting the ones from the end of September,” Kishida said. “This absolutely cannot be tolerated.”
“This is the sixth time in the short period just counting the ones from the end of September, this absolutely cannot be tolerated.”
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
The United States condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launch, calling it a violation of the United Nations Security Council Resolutions and a threat to regional neighbors and the international community.
The State Department spokesperson, however, added the country is committed to a diplomatic approach and called on the North to engage in dialog.
The missile launch was the sixth in 12 days and the first since North Korea fired an intermediate-range missile over Japan on Tuesday.
On Thursday, North Korea condemned the United States for repositioning a US aircraft carrier in the waters off the Korean peninsula.
North Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Thursday that it strongly condemns "the Korean People’s Army on South Korea-US joint drills escalating the military tensions on the Korean Peninsula.”
The USS Ronald Reagan and its strike group of accompanying warships were abruptly redeployed after South Korea and the US military conducted rare missile drills east of North Korea.
North Korea begins firing ballistic missiles at Japan
North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan on Tuesday, in what appears to be a deliberate escalation to get the attention of Tokyo and Washington.
It is the North's first missile launch over Japan since 2017. Japan issued an alert to some citizens to take shelter.
A single intermediate-range missile was launched at 7:23 AM JST from North Korea’s Chagang province, bordering China, according to South Korea’s military. The missile flew about 4,500 km (2,800 miles), hitting an altitude of roughly 1,000 km (621 miles), according to Japanese and South Korean assessments.
After Tuesday’s launch, the United States, Britain, France, Albania, Norway and Ireland called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.
Two experts told CNN these flight details suggest the missile fired was likely a Hwasong-12 – an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) last tested in January.
“This is a missile that North Korea started testing in 2017 … So it’s not really a new missile,” said Jeffrey Lewis, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at CNS.
But, he added, its launch is significant because of the distance it can travel.
“North Korea has a bunch of missiles that are shorter range, and that wouldn’t go over Japan – but they have a small number of missiles that could make that journey,” he said.
The Japanese government issued warnings for citizens living in the projected path of the missile to take cover as it flew past northern Japan before falling into the Pacific Ocean, according to the Wall Street Journal.
North Korea has launched a series of short-range weapons in recent weeks, but Tuesday’s launch appears to be its longest-range launch since testing an intercontinental ballistic missile in May.
“This is an outrageous act following the recent repeated launches of ballistic missiles and we strongly denounce it,” Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said.
Reuters contributed to this report.