N. Korea fires two medium-range ballistic missiles into East Sea
北, 동해로 중거리 탄도미사일 1발 발사…'노동미사일' 추정
North Korea fired two mid-range ballistic missiles into the
East Sea this morning.
It comes just days after the
U.S. warned it would slap even tougher sanctions on the regime if it continued with its nuclear and missile tests.
We have Kim Hyun-bin on the line from the defense ministry in
Seoul.
Hyun-bin tells us more.
Mark. As you mentioned, North Korea launched two ballistic missiles.
The first was fired at 5:55am,
South Korea time, from
Sukchon in the country's southwest.
Officials here say the missile,
... presumed to be a medium-range Nodong missile, flew eight-hundred kilometers before falling into the East Sea
The other one was fired
15 minutes later from the same location.
That one disappeared from radar at an altitude of 17 kilometers.
A
South Korean military official says it most likely malfunctioned and blew up in mid-air.
South Korea's
Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missiles were fired from a transporter erector launcher also known as a
TEL.
North Korea last test-fired a Nodong missile in
March 2014.
It has a range of up to 13-hundred kilometers putting
Seoul and
Tokyo within striking distance.
Making matters more concerning,... the missiles' warhead can be loaded with bio-chemical substances.
Not a missile to be taken lightly then. Hyun-bin,... North Korea rarely just launches these kind of missiles spontaneously,... what prompted the
North to do this today?
Well,... there is a good chance these launches were in protest against South Korea and the U.S.'s annual joint military drills known as
Key Resolve and
Foal Eagle.
Today is actually the final day of Key Resolve, a computer program war game exercise that aims to enhance interoperability between the two allies.
Foal Eagle consists of numerous field training exercises and that will run through the end of April.
Washington has already deployed one of its nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and nuclear submarine for the drills.
There's also word the U.S. could deploy a
B-2 stealth bomber and other key strategic weaponry to the peninsula before Foal Eagle ends... as a
symbol of the strength of the Seoul-Washington alliance.
Back to you, Mark.
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