North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile Friday in one of its most powerful tests ever, with Japan saying the weapon may have had the range to hit the US mainland.
The missile was believed to have come down in the waters of Japanโs exclusive economic zone (EEZ), Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said as he blasted the launch as โabsolutely unacceptableโ.
The launch is Pyongyangโs second in two days and part of a record-breaking blitz in recent weeks, which North Korea โ and some allies including Moscow โ blame on the United States boosting regional security cooperation, including joint military exercises.
UN chief Antonio Guterres condemned the launch, and called on Pyongyang โto immediately desist from taking any further provocative actions,โ according to his spokesperson.
The missile flew 1,000 kilometers (621 miles) at an altitude of 6,100 km, South Koreaโs military said, only slightly less than the ICBM Pyongyang fired on March 24, which appeared to be the Northโs most powerful such test yet.
Later on Friday, Tokyo and Washington held joint military drills in the airspace over the Sea of Japan.
โJapan Self-Defense Forces and US armed forces conducted a bilateral exerciseโฆ amid an increasingly severe security environment surrounding Japan,โ a joint staff statement distributed by the Japanese defence ministry said.
โThis bilateral exercise reaffirms the strong will between Japan and the United States to respond to any situation.โ
US Vice President Kamala Harris convened a meeting on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific summit in Bangkok to discuss the launch with regional leaders.
โWe strongly condemn these actions and we again call for North Korea to stop further unlawful, destabilising acts,โ Harris said.
Later Friday, a senior official accompanying Harris said Washington will ask China, North Koreaโs primary ally, to help rein in Pyongyang.
โIt will definitely be part of our diplomacy to try to get China to join the countries that are on record condemning this today,โ the official said, speaking on customary condition of anonymity.
โLofted trajectoryโ
North Korea, led by Kim Jong Un, has fired scores of ballistic missiles this year โ far more than any other year on record โ and recent launches have been increasingly provocative, including firing a missile over Japan last month, triggering a rare air-raid warning.
On November 2, Pyongyang fired 23 missiles, including one which crossed the de facto maritime border and landed near the Southโs territorial waters for the first time since the end of hostilities in the Korean War in 1953. Seoul called it โeffectively a territorial invasionโ.
The next day, North Korea fired an ICBM โ although Seoul said it appeared to fail mid-flight.
Fridayโs ICBM was launched at a โlofted trajectoryโ, Tokyoโs Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada said, meaning the missile is fired up and not out, typically to avoid overflying neighbouring countries.
He said their calculations indicated the missile โcould have had a range capability of 15,000 km, depending on the weight of its warhead, and if thatโs the case, it means the US mainland was within its rangeโ.
In Washington, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said Fridayโs launch, although highly concerning, was not deemed โa threat to homeland.โ
โA clear messageโ
The launch comes a day after North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile in what Pyongyang said was a response to Sundayโs talks between Seoul, Tokyo and Washington.
The Northโs foreign minister, Choe Son Hui, had warned that Pyongyang would take โfiercerโ military action if the United States followed through on plans to strengthen its โextended deterrenceโ commitment to regional allies.
In addition to speaking to Seoul and Tokyoโs leaders, US President Joe Biden discussed North Koreaโs recent missile tests with Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping earlier this week, as fears grow that the reclusive regime will soon carry out its seventh nuclear test.
The launches are โa clear message to the US and Japanโ, said Han Kwon-hee, manager of the Missile Strategy Forum, adding the launches were โpart of the Northโs response to recent talksโ.
Pyongyang is trying to show the South and America that its โmissiles can easily break through their defence systems, no matter how much the two try to improve themโ, Han added.
China, Pyongyangโs main diplomatic and economic ally, joined Russia in May in vetoing a US-led bid at the UN Security Council to tighten sanctions on North Korea.
Experts say North Korea is seizing the opportunity to conduct banned missile tests, confident of escaping further UN sanctions due to Ukraine-linked gridlock at the United Nations.
