North Korea fires long-range ballistic missile

WORLD, March 16 (YPA) – North Korea on Thursday fired a short-range ballistic missile toward waters off its western coast, South Korea’s military said.

“Our military forces detected the launch of a long-range ballistic missile from the vicinity of the Sunan district in Pyongyang,” the South Korean military’s General Staff said, noting that the missile is intercontinental, according to AFP.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff added that the missile, which flew a thousand kilometers, was launched on a high trajectory.

Japan’s cabinet office said the missile reached a maximum altitude of more than 6,000 km.

Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada said the missile likely landed in the waters outside his country’s exclusive economic zone.

The Thursday launch came hours before the leaders of South Korea and Japan were due to meet in Tokyo, with Pyongyang’s missile and nuclear programmes high on the agenda.

E.M