Pyongyang’s latest test launches come just a day after both North and South Korea fired missiles across the de facto maritime border between the two countries.
North Korea test fired an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) towards its eastern coast on Thursday, triggering alarms across parts of Japan as tension in the region escalates amid ongoing joint military exercises between the U.S. and South Korea.
North Korea launched an ICBM and two short-range ballistic missiles which landed in the Sea of Japan, with South Korean officials contending that the longer range missile failed mid-flight, Yonhap News reported.
According to Kyodo News, residents in Japan initially received an alert to seek shelter as the ICBM was expected to fly over the Japanese mainland but this was later changed after the missile landed in waters to the west of the country.
Thursday’s launch follows a series of other similar tests by Pyongyang in recent days and it could be leading up to a nuclear test, the Associated Press reported.
