It raises the level of provocations launched by North Korea with the launch of an unspecified missile that has flipped Japan and then falls into the Pacific. In Tokyo, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe talked of "unprecedented severity" gesture, while the White House said in a phone call he agreed with US President Donald Trump on the need to "increase pressure" on Pyongyang. Trump, for his part, has returned to his rhetoric in no uncertain terms with the regime: "Threats and destabilizing actions only increase the isolation of the North Korean regime," "all options are on the table." Meanwhile, today the United Nations Security Council meets at the request of South Korea, Japan and the United States. In July, after the launch of an intercontinental missile, the UN executive had approved new sanctions against Kim Jong Un's regime.
The missile, of unknown type, was fired from nearby Pyongyang and dropped into the Pacific at 1.180 kilometers east of Cape Erimo. It has traveled more than 2.700 kilometers and reached an altitude of up to about 550 kilometers, according to the Japanese government. The distance reached is slightly less than the 3.200 kilometers separating the country from the island of Guam, an unincorporated territory of the United States where US military bases are located, which the regime had threatened to strike. The Japanese authorities believe Pyongyang has launched a Hwasong-12, medium-long range ballistic missile model tested last May and was cited in the attack plan in Guam.
Tokyo detected the missile around the local 6, a few minutes after it was fired, alerting the northern people to take shelter in the underground. The government decided not to intercept the device, believing that there was no risk of falling into the territory. South Korea instead reacted with exercises near the North Border: it deployed four F.15K jets that launched bombs on a target near the Dmz Zone, after President Moon Jae-in ordered the " Army to "show off its ability to overtake those North Koreans in the event of an attack." However, Seoul reiterated the need to seek dialogue.
Prime Minister Abe spoke of "serious, serious and unprecedented threat". The White House then issued a note saying that Abe and Trump agreed "Pyongyang is a direct, serious and growing threat", and "have pledged to increase pressure on North Korea and do everything possible to convince International community to do the same. " For its part, the American addition to saying that "all threats are on the table" also stated that North Korea has "reported its contempt for neighbors, for all UN members, and for the minimum standards of Acceptable international behavior ".
North Korea's UN Ambassador Han Tae Song at the Disarmament Conference in Geneva has pointed his finger at the US: "Now that they have openly declared their hostile intentions toward North Korea," with joint exercises With Seoul, "my country has all the reasons to respond with harsh counter-measures by exercising its right to self-defense." The US brings, the situation to "an explosive level" and continues their "enduring hostile policy".
China has called for dialogue and moderation on both sides, saying the new launch is proof that sanctions are not resolved. From Moscow, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called for "North Koreans Respect UN Resolutions" and his deputy Sergey Ryabkov called for "moderation" in Pyongyang and "to avoid military escalation" in Washington. French President Emmanuel Macron was said to be ready for "new measures," British Prime Minister Theresa May favored more pressure. The European Union, through the High Representative for the European Union's Foreign Policy, expressed its support for the dialogue, but announced that it would "evaluate" an adequate response.
This is Pyongyang's thirteenth ballistic missile launch this year and after Trump's arrival at the White House. The American used bellicose rhetoric towards the regime and the maximum tension was reached in early August, when North Korea threatened to bomb Guam. The two countries are technically still at war, because the conflict of 1950-1953 was not concluded by a peace treaty, but by a truce.