The Japanese government considers the frequency of North Korean missile launches “a provocation”.
The head of Japanese diplomacy on Friday considered the frequency of missile launches by North Korea to be “a provocation”, following the last shot of a short-range ballistic missile into the Sea of Japan.
The frequent missile launches are “provocative and indicate that they are turning their backs on the international community”, Yoshimasa Hayashi said at a press conference.
“Therefore, we condemn these acts and are considering a response,” he warned.
North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile towards the Sea of Japan, called the East Sea by the two Koreas, in the ninth launch carried out in the last 20 days, which represents another step in the escalation of tension in the region.
This latest launch came just an hour after at least ten North Korean planes carried out maneuvers near the southern border, forcing Seoul to deploy planes for a possible intercept maneuver. On Thursday, Pyongyang had announced that it would carry out another test of cruise missiles towards the Yellow Sea.
In response, Seoul also announced the first sanctions in five years against North Korea, affecting 15 North Korean individuals and 16 entities, including four members of the Second Academy of Natural Sciences, a North Korean state organization that the UN says. be responsible for research and development of advanced weapons.
Hayashi said Tokyo supported Seoul’s decision but did not indicate whether Japan would follow suit and apply new sanctions against the regime.
The Japanese government will work with the international community, especially South Korea and the United States, to see what the next step should be, he added.
In this regard, the spokesman for the Japanese Government, Hirokazu Matsuno, stressed that Japan is observing North Korea’s military movements, but declined to provide any details “so that it is not possible to assess the ability to counterattack”.
Kim Jong-un’s regime has been testing tactical nuclear weapons systems since September 25 in response to recent maneuvers by a US aircraft carrier in waters off the Korean peninsula.
