North Korea Reportedly Launches Unidentified Projectile Toward Sea of Japan

A TV screen shows a file image of North Korea’s missile launch during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday, Nov. 2, 2022. South Korea says it has issued an air raid alert for residents on an island off its eastern coast after North Korea fired a few missiles toward the seaBeing updatedNorth Korea has reportedly fired an unidentified projectile toward the Sea of Japan, authorities from South Korea and Japan confirmed early Saturday.Preliminary findings suggest that the projectile was a ballistic missile, however, it remains unconfirmed. The Japanese coast guard has indicated that the projectile is no longer airborne and has already fallen, but that a second test-firing could be possible.The Saturday launch came hours after South Korea successfully conducted a test flight of a solid-propellant space launch vehicle, of which is part of a larger effort to strengthen Seoul’s space-based surveillance capabilities.Additionally, the South Korean military more recently indicated that the latest slate of military drills it has conducted were in direct response to five drones that had violated Seoul’s airspace, and were said to have belong to North Korea.Reports noted that four of the drones had flown near the Ganghwado Island while another traversed the airspace along Seoul’s metropolitan area.MilitarySouth Korean Defense Minister Apologizes for North Korean Drone Incident28 December, 08:13 GMTNorth Korea carried out a missile test on December 23, which turned out to be two short-range ballistic missiles. In November, one of North Korea’s missile launches saw a long-range projectile fly so close to Japan that it triggered the island nation’s emergency broadcast system.The Saturday launch adds to a long list of test flights carried out by Pyongyang, which recorded over 40 launches – its highest tally than any previous year.

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