South Korea and the US military conducted rare missile drills and an American supercarrier repositioned east of North Korea after Pyongyang flew a missile over Japan.
North Korea test-fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) farther than ever before on Tuesday, sending it soaring over Japan for the first time in five years and prompting a warning for residents there to take cover.
According to Reuters report, the White House National Security Council called North Korea’s latest test “dangerous and reckless” and the US military and its allies have stepped up displays of force.
South Korean and American troops fired a volley of missiles into the sea in response, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Wednesday, and the allies earlier staged a bombing drill with fighter jets in the Yellow Sea.
The USS Ronald Reagan, an American aircraft carrier that made its first stop in South Korea last month for the first time in years, will also return to the sea between Korea and Japan with its strike group of other warships, Reuters reported. The South Korean military called it a “highly unusual” move designed to show the allies’ resolve to respond to any threats from North Korea.
The fiery failure threatened to overshadow Seoul’s efforts to demonstrate military prowess in the face of North Korea’s increasing capabilities.
