North Korea appears to test-fire ICBM for first time since 2017

SEOUL, South Korea — For the first time since 2017, North Korea has test-launched a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile, neighboring countries said Thursday.

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According to The Associated Press, South Korean officials said the ICBM fired from Sunan reached an altitude of more than 3,850 miles and traveled about 670 miles. The Japanese Defense Ministry said the missile flew for 71 minutes before landing in waters within Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone off the island of Hokkaido, CNN reported.

Japan’s Deputy Defense Minister Makoto Oniki said the weapon seems to be a “new type of ICBM,” according to CNN. It appeared to have a longer range than the Hwasong-15 that North Korea tested 4 1/2 years ago, The New York Times reported. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the missile tested Thursday was the Hwasong-17, which North Korea unveiled during a 2020 military parade, the AP reported.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida described North Korea’s actions as “unforgivable recklessness.”

“We resolutely condemn the act,” Kishida said, according to the AP.

South Korea’s military also condemned the test, saying in a statement that North Korea “violated its own moratorium on ICBM tests that it had promised to the international community,” the Times reported.

“This is a serious threat to peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula and the international community, as well as a clear violation of the U.N. Security Council resolutions,” the statement read.

Following the test, South Korea conducted live-fire missile drills of its own, according to the AP.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki called on North Korea to “immediately cease its destabilizing actions,” the AP reported.

“The United States will take all necessary measures to ensure the security of the American homeland and Republic of Korea and Japanese allies,” she said.

– The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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