North Korea launched the missile around 5:22 p.m. local time from the Sunan area of its capital Pyongyang, where the country’s main international airport is located, according to the South Korean military. It flew 900 kilometers (560 miles) for 66 minutes, and reached an altitude of 5,700 kilometers, before falling about 200 kilometers west of Oshima Island in Hokkaido, in northern Japan, according to the Japanese Ministry of Defense.
Based on the flight data, Saturday’s missile appears to have a potential capacity to fly as far as 15,000 kilometers (9,320 miles), said Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada. While dependent on the weight of the warhead, the mainland U.S. could have been within the missile’s range, he added.
Saturday’s missile from North Korea was launched at a high angle, according to South Korean military officials. North Korea typically fires long-range missiles almost straight up so as not to fly over the airspaces of neighboring countries.
Pyongyang’s Foreign Ministry had on Friday threatened “unprecedented” counteractions shortly after South Korea and the United States announced plans to hold nuclear drills designed to deter threats from North Korea.
Defense officials from Seoul and Washington will gather at Pentagon on Wednesday for a tabletop exercise focusing on specific scenarios of nuclear attacks from North Korea. The two countries are also planning field exercises next month that will be upscaled from those of previous years, Seoul’s defense ministry said.
The allies say the drills are defensive in nature, but North Korea views them as “rehearsals for invasion” and typically reacts angrily.
“In case the U.S. and South Korea carry into practice their already announced plan for military drills … they will face unprecedentedly persistent and strong counteractions,” the North Korean Foreign Ministry said on Friday via state media.
Saturday’s event also follows North Korea’s record year of weapons tests, including the launch of its largest ICBMs, named Hwasong-17.
North Korea displayed about a dozen Hwasong-17 missiles at a glitzy military parade in Pyongyang last week. Analysts said some of the ICBMs appeared to be solid-propellant missiles that can be launched more quickly and are harder to detect. The parade also showcased what state media called “tactical nuclear units.”
South Korea’s presidential office on Saturday convened an emergency meeting of the National Security Council over the missile launch. “It is a serious provocation that raises tensions on the Korean Peninsula and the region,” said the council members in a statement.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, who took office last year, pledged to work more closely with the United States to strengthen the bilateral military alliance in the face of growing North Korean threats.
Michelle Ye Hee Lee in Tokyo contributed to this report.
*This story has not been edited by The Infallible staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.
