14 July 2014

Editorial: North Korea Fires Missiles in Japan’s Direction


By James Pach

Pyongyang continues a series of missile launches, prompting a protest from Japan.

Japan has lodged a protest with North Korea after the latter fired two ballistic missiles early Sunday morning (JST) into waters separating the two countries.
The missile test continues a series of launches in recent months, which have drawn international criticism. In the middle of last week, Pyongyang fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan, albeit launching them somewhat unusually from its western province of Hwanghae.
The Sunday launch, again involving short-range ballistic missiles, were also from an unusual location: Kaesong, just 20 kilometers from the military demarcation line and better known for its proximity to the joint industrial complex North Korea runs with South Korea. According to Yonhap, a South Korean military official says the launch may have been in response to the arrival of the USS George Washington, a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, in the port of Busan ahead of joint military exercises later this month with South Korea and Japan. 

Read the full story at The Diplomat