A day after North Korea’s missile test, the United States and South Korea fired their own missiles into the region in a joint exercise. This is what the South Korean military said last night.
These are four US-made ATACMS short-range ballistic missiles and a South Korean Hyunmoo-2 missile. All five were shot toward the Sea of Japan. The military said the South Korean missile crashed shortly after launch, causing no injuries.
This came in response to North Korea’s launch of a medium-range ballistic missile on Tuesday. This missile flew over Japan and landed in the Pacific Ocean. It was the first time in nearly five years that a North Korean missile flew over the Japanese archipelago. Residents in northern Japan were called to shelter with air raid sirens.
UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from testing ballistic missiles that can carry a nuclear warhead. In response to North Korea’s launch of a ballistic missile, South Korea and the United States have already conducted military exercises. It was carried out by eight fighters, four from the two countries.
The South Korean military said they had fired on a “virtual enemy” in the Yellow Sea, west of the Korean peninsula. The armies wanted to prove that they could “respond firmly” to North Korean provocations.
