The authorities of South Korea and Japan reported this Saturday the launch of "what could be a ballistic missile" off their coasts, an action they attribute to North Korea, according to the statement released by the South Korean Army.
According to the military commands of Seoul, the projectile was fired from the vicinity of Wonsan, a port city located in the southwest of North Korea, at 06:30 hours (local time) this Saturday, with no additional details provided about the model of missile used at this time.
The initial investigations indicate that the device would have traveled more than 700 kilometers before impacting the sea, as both South Korea and the United States agree in stating, having jointly followed the trajectory and movements of North Korea, sharing intelligence information throughout the episode.
"Our armed forces are closely monitoring the various movements of North Korea within the framework of a strong combined defense posture between South Korea and the United States, and maintain the capability and readiness to respond decisively to any provocation," the statement added.
The Yonhap news agency, citing a source from the South Korean government, pointed out that "there is a possibility that the launched missile is of intermediate range with a reduced range," emphasizing that the scenario recalls what happened on August 12, when Pyongyang launched another ballistic missile in protest of the joint military exercises of Seoul and Washington.
The Japanese Ministry of Defense has indicated, for its part, that the device that fell into the sea "could be a ballistic missile," and has urged vessels transiting the area to exercise extreme caution.
"An object that could be a ballistic missile has been launched from North Korea. The Ministry will provide updates as soon as more information is available," the Ministry assured in a statement on its social media.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff also noted that it has reinforced its surveillance systems in light of the possibility of new missile tests and that it will continue to exchange intelligence information with the United States and Japan. At the same time, it confirmed that the National Security Council has called for an emergency meeting this Saturday to analyze the implications of the launch.
The new arms test takes place after a harsh exchange of statements between political leaders from Seoul and Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, following the explosion of several mines in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), an incident that left three South Korean soldiers injured and from which Pyongyang has firmly distanced itself.
Kim described Seoul's conclusions about what happened as a "farce" and warned that the North Korean regime will respond with military actions if South Korean forces intensify their operations in the border area and open fire on its troops.
In this regard, Kim accused the South Korean high command of taking advantage of the incident, which occurred on September 21, to legitimize new political and military decisions against Pyongyang, while denouncing that Seoul would have made warning shots to deter North Korean soldiers working on the construction of new border barriers.
The verbal escalation and exchange of accusations occur in a context in which South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has doubled his efforts to initiate a dialogue process with North Korea that leads to a definitive peace agreement, given that the Korean War (1950-1953) ended only with the signing of an armistice.