[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] The Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that North Korea fired an unidentified ballistic missile into the East Sea on the 18th.
The military is analyzing specifications such as flight distance, altitude, and speed. This ballistic missile launch by North Korea on this day is the second provocation this year, occurring 49 days after firing a super-large multiple rocket launcher on New Year's Day.
North Korea's ballistic missile launch on this day is interpreted as a response to the U.S.-led Security Council meeting. In a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs the previous day, North Korea claimed that the U.S. convened a United Nations Security Council meeting related to North Korea, asserting that this shows the Security Council is "reaching an extreme point where the U.S.'s attempt to turn it into an illegal and shameless execution agency for its hostile policy against Korea can no longer be tolerated."
It continued, "Since the beginning of this year, we have concentrated all our efforts on realizing our own development plans and maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the region," adding, "As a sovereign state, we have refrained from any specific military actions other than the normal schedule of strengthening our defense capabilities that we should rightfully undertake."
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