North Korea Fires ICBM-Class Missile into Sea of Japan

Tokyo/Seoul, March 16 (Jiji Press)--North Korea fired a missile of intercontinental ballistic missile-class into the Sea of Japan from near Pyongyang on Thursday morning, the Japanese Defense Ministry said.

The missile, launched around 7:09 a.m. (10:09 p.m. Wednesday GMT), is assumed to have fallen into waters outside Japan's exclusive economic zone around 8:19 a.m., at a point some 200 kilometers west of the island of Oshimaoshima in Hokkaido, northernmost Japan, according to the ministry.

The ministry said there have been no reports of damage from the missile to ships and aircraft.

As South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol is visiting Japan to hold talks with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, North Korea may have fired the missile as a warning against any moves by Japan and South Korea to enhance bilateral ties, as well as their security cooperation, pundits said.

It was the sixth time this year for North Korea to launch a ballistic missile. Pyongyang last fired an ICBM on Feb. 18.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]