North Korea has fired a ballistic missile that appears to have landed in Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), according to Japanese and South Korean officials. The missile launch comes ahead of upcoming US-South Korea tabletop exercises in Washington next week.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said that the missile was an “ICBM-class ballistic missile” that travelled an estimated 900km (560 miles), reaching a maximum altitude of 5,700km (3,542 miles). Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the missile appeared to have landed “within Japan’s EEZ, west of Hokkaido”.
The launch is seen as an escalation of tensions in the region, as North Korea continues to develop its nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities. The US and South Korea have condemned the launch, with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken calling it “unacceptable”.