Japan ordered its military Saturday to prepare to shoot down a North Korean ballistic missile after Pyongyang said this week it was ready to launch its first military spy satellite. Placing the satellite into orbit would require a long-range projectile, which North Korea is banned from launching because the United Nations views such exercises as tests of ballistic missile technology. Hamada instructed troops to "implement measures necessary to limit damage in the event of a ballistic missile falling". In 2012 and 2016, North Korea tested ballistic missiles that Pyongyang called satellite launches. On Tuesday G7 foreign ministers meeting in Japan demanded North Korea refrain from any further ballistic missile tests following a spate of launches this year.

Source: The North Africa Journal April 23, 2023 05:47 UTC