MOSCOW, Jan 31 — North Korea has confirmed that it launched the Hwasong-12 intermediate-range ballistic missile on Sunday, making it the longest-range missile tested by Pyongyang since 2017, Sputnik quoted the South Korean Yonhap news agency report.
“The test-fire was aimed to selectively evaluate the missile being produced and deployed and to verify the overall accuracy of the weapon system,” Yonhap quoted the North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) as saying on Monday.
According to the South Korean military, the missile was fired from North Korea’s Jagang Province toward the East Sea (Sea of Japan) on Sunday and flew about 800 km (497 miles) with the maximum altitude reaching 2,000 km (1,243 miles). On Sunday, the same estimates were given by Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno, who said that the missile fell outside Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone after its estimated 30-minute flight.
“It (the test launch) confirmed the accuracy, security and effectiveness of the operation of the Hwasong 12-type weapon system under production,” Yonhap quoted KCNA as saying on Monday.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un did not attend the Sunday test-firing, Yonhap specified.
The launch of the Hwasong-12 missile, which has a range of 4,500 kilometres (2,796 miles), is North Korea’s longest-range missile test since the test-firing of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in November 2017.
Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that following North Korea’s Sunday launch the United States is ready to sit down at the negotiating table with Pyongyang, but will still continue to build up its military potential in the region to protect itself and its allies.
The US Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) said shortly after the Sunday test-firing that it posed no immediate threat to the US and its allies.
Sources: BERNAMA