Tuesday, June 19, 2007
According to the Japanese Defense Ministry, North Korea has fired a short-range missile today into the Sea of Japan. Officials believed it to be part of a regular exercise.
“North Korea fired a short-range missile in what appeared to be part of a military drill,” a Japanese Defense Ministry official was quoted as saying by Yonhap News Agency.
A South Korean defense spokesman said such tests are routine.
“We don’t deny that North Korea fired a missile,” South Korean Army Colonel Ha Doo-chul, told Yonhap. “If it did, we regard it as a routine exercise.”
The test comes at the time when North Korea is inviting inspectors in to discuss its nuclear programs.