SEOUL: North Korea test-fired what appeared to be a hypersonic missile off its east coast on Wednesday, but it exploded in midair, South Korea’s military said. The missile was launched from near the capital, Pyongyang, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. Japan’s Defense Ministry said the missile flew to an altitude of about 100 km (62 miles) and range of more than 200 km.

Senior officials of South Korea, the United States and Japan held a phone call and condemned the launch as a violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions and a serious threat to the peace and stability of the region and beyond. South Korean and US air forces said they conducted joint exercises involving F-22 and F-35 stealth fighter as part of their annual Buddy Squadron training. South Korea’s marine corps staged separate firing drills near the maritime border with the North for the first time since Seoul scrapped an inter-Korean military pact early this month. The drills were announced earlier in June.

US Indo-Pacific Command also issued a condemnation and called on Pyongyang to refrain from further unlawful and destabilizing acts. “While we have assessed that this event does not pose an immediate threat to US personnel, or territory, or to our allies, we continue to monitor the situation,” it said in a statement. North Korea’s last missile launch was on May 30.

North Korea this week criticized the deployment of a US aircraft carrier to joint drills with South Korea and Japan, and warned of an “overwhelming, new demonstration of deterrence”. The missile launch comes a day after the 74-year anniversary of the beginning of the Korean War. North Korean state media KCNA said on Wednesday a mass rally in Pyongyang was held to commemorate the war anniversary, calling it a day of “struggle against U.S. imperialism” and calling the United States the archenemy.

Flight disruption

North Korea has flown hundreds of balloons carrying trash toward the South, including on Wednesday. Balloons filled with refuse and launched Wednesday have caused disruptions in takeoffs and landings at South Korea’s Incheon international airport for about three hours before dawn, an airport spokesperson said. Among the items carried by the North Korean balloons have been articles printed with Hello Kitty characters, badly worn clothing, and soil containing traces of human feces and parasites, South Korea has said.

South Korea’s military on Wednesday said about 100 balloons had fallen to the ground between Tuesday and Wednesday, mostly in the capital Seoul and the surrounding Gyeonggi province. Most of them just carried scraps of paper.

On Wednesday night, North Korea floated more trash balloons into the South, the South Korean military said, prompting Seoul and Gyeonggi province to send out alerts to citizens. — Reuters