[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-seop] Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida condemned North Korea's successive missile launches, saying they are "absolutely unacceptable."
According to the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 13th, Prime Minister Kishida attended the 17th East Asia Summit (EAS) held in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, and stated, "Since last month, North Korea has launched ballistic missiles at a very frequent rate, including those that passed over our country (Japan)," adding, "This is a clear and serious challenge to the international community and is absolutely unacceptable."
Prime Minister Kishida further emphasized, "It is essential for the international community to unite and fully implement the Security Council resolutions to achieve the 'CVID (Complete, Verifiable, and Irreversible Dismantlement)' of all of North Korea's weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and ballistic missiles of all ranges." He also appealed for support to promptly resolve the issue of Japanese abductees by North Korea.
Additionally, Kishida claimed, "In the East China Sea, activities infringing on Japan's sovereignty by China continue to intensify," and "In the South China Sea, militarization and coercive activities that escalate regional tensions are still ongoing." Regarding the ballistic missile China launched near Taiwan in August this year, which fell into Japan's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), he described it as "a critical issue directly related to regional security."
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