Japan, US, S. Korea protest North Korea’s missile launches

Tokyo: Senior diplomats from Japan, South Korea and the United States held a phone conversation, during which they condemned Pyongyang’s recent missile launches, the Japanese Foreign Ministry said on Saturday.
Earlier in the day, the Japanese Defense Ministry said that North Korea test-fired three short-range ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan. The missiles flew over a distance of 350 kilometers (217 miles), reaching a maximum altitude of 100 kilometers (62 miles). All of the missiles landed outside of Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
The sides strongly condemned North Korea’s record number of missile launches, including the launch on December 31st. The unanimous opinion that such actions represent a serious and immediate threat to regional security, as well as a clear challenge to the international community was expressed once again,” the ministry said.
Director of the Department for Asia and Oceania of the Japanese Foreign Ministry Takehiro Funakoshi, South Korean Special Representative for Peace and Security on the Korean Peninsula Kim Gunn and US Special Representative for North Korea Sung Kim participated in the talks.
The latest test-firing carried out by Pyongyang on Saturday came after South Korea’s successful launch of a solid-fuel carrier rocket on Friday, as part of its efforts to strengthen space-based reconnaissance capabilities, according to South Korea’s Defense Ministry.
North Korea has conducted nearly 40 test-launches this year, firing around 70 missiles, including an intercontinental ballistic missile test-fired in November. (UNI)