The South Korean military announced on Tuesday that North Korea fired a ballistic missile towards the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea.
Japan said it “appears” North Korea fired a missile, Kyodo News reported, adding that the Japanese Coast Guard believes the missile actually landed.
The launch comes less than two weeks after Pyongyang's state media announced that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw a successful test of a solid-fuel engine for a “new type of medium-range hypersonic missile.”
Tuesday's launch was the third test of a ballistic missile since the start of the year, following a solid-fuel missile test overseen by Mr. Kim in March, and another with a maneuverable hypersonic warhead in January.
Last year, North Korea claimed to have successfully tested its first solid-fueled intercontinental ballistic missile, the largest and longest-range class of ballistic missiles, and described it as a major breakthrough in North Korea's nuclear counterattack capabilities.
Rockets that use this type of fuel are considered more maneuverable and safer, compared to those that use liquid fuel, according to experts.
With solid fuel missiles, it is not necessary to refuel before launch, which makes their deployment faster and thus makes their recognition and destruction by a potential adversary more complicated.
Since the beginning of the year, Pyongyang has designated Seoul as its “main enemy,” closed agencies dedicated to inter-Korean reunification and dialogue, and threatened to go to war in the event of any violation of its territory “even by 0.001 millimeters.”
