North Korea's missile launches a threat to peace and stability: Japanese PM Kishida

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Monday (Dec 18) that North Korea's latest missile launches violated resolutions of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and were a threat to peace and stability. The launches are "not only a clear violation of UN Security Council resolutions but also a threat to peace and stability of the region and we strongly condemn" them, Kishida told a gathering of South-East Asian leaders in Tokyo, the news agency AFP reported.

On Monday, North Korea launched a long-range ballistic missile with the potential capability of striking the United States, South Korea's capital Seoul and Japan's capital Tokyo. This firing followed the test of a shorter-range missile on Sunday night.

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Missile launches pose a threat to Pyongyang's neighbours: US

Apart from Japan, the US also condemned North Korea's latest missile launches. Speaking to AFP, a State Department spokesperson said, "These launches, like the other ballistic missile launches Pyongyang has conducted this year, are in violation of multiple United Nations Security Council resolutions."

The spokesperson added that the launches posed a threat to Pyongyang's neighbours and undermined regional security.

On Monday, the South Korean military said that it detected the launch of a long-range ballistic missile from the Pyongyang area on Monday that flew 1,000 kilometres before splashing down in the East Sea.

According to the Japanese defence ministry, the missile was an ICBM-class missile with a potential range covering all of the United States.

"The ICBM-class ballistic missile launched this time, if calculated based on the trajectory, depending on weight of warhead, could have a flying range of over 15,000 kilometres (9,320 miles)," said Shingo Miyake, parliamentary vice-minister of defence.

In 2023, North Korea fired four ICBMs, with the last launch in July.

(With inputs from agencies)