On May 30, in response to North Korea’s suspected launch of ballistic missiles, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida strongly condemned the act by stating, “We have already protested North Korea.”
According to TV Asahi, Kishida met with reporters at the Prime Minister’s Office of Japan on the morning of May 30, stating, “North Korea has launched ballistic missiles. They fell outside Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), and no damage has been confirmed.” Regarding the possibility of North Korea’s launch violating UN Security Council resolutions, Kishida emphasized, “We have already protested. We will respond in cooperation with the United States and South Korea and focus on information collection and surveillance.”
Citing Japan’s Ministry of Defense information, the Japan Coast Guard announced that an object, possibly a ballistic missile, was launched from North Korea at 6:21 AM on May 30.
Japanese defense officials speculated that the North Korean projectile fell outside of Japan’s EEZ. NHK Broadcasting explained that this is the seventh time North Korea has launched a projectile using ballistic missile technology.
The Japanese government convened an emergency response team of officials from relevant ministries in the Prime Minister’s Office of Emergency Management to collect information, confirm any damage, and discuss future responses.
It was reported that the South Korean military is considering that North Korea used a mobile launcher (TEL) to fire about ten super-large artillery shells (KN-25) throughout the launch day. North Korea’s super-large artillery shells have a guidance function and are classified as ballistic missiles.
Earlier, North Korea had notified the Japan Coast Guard that it would launch a satellite rocket from May 27 to June 4. On the night of the 27th, North Korea launched “Malligyong-1-1,” its second military reconnaissance satellite, toward the south of the West Sea. However, it exploded in the air after two minutes. The second military reconnaissance was launched from the Dongchang-ri area in Cholsan, Pyonganbuk-do.
