Seoul claims that in retaliation for North Korea launching a missile over Japan, South Korea and the US military have launched a barrage of missiles into the sea.

The East Sea, commonly known as the Sea of Japan, is located between the Korean peninsula and Japan. For the first time since 2017, Pyongyang test-fired a ballistic missile on Tuesday, propelling it over Japan.

US, South Korea Respond to North Korea With Huge Missile Test

In retaliation, military exercises have been carried out by the US, Japan, and South Korea as a show of might. According to a statement, on Wednesday, the US and South Korea both fired two Army Tactical Missile System missiles built in the US.

John Kirby, a spokesperson for the US National Security Council, said that the launch was intended to demonstrate to the North that the US and its allies have the military capabilities at the ready to respond to US and our allies' provocations.

A South Korean missile that failed shortly after launch and crashed with no injuries was reported separately by the country's military. Pyongyang's choice to launch a missile over Japan on Tuesday has been interpreted as a planned escalation to draw Tokyo and Washington's attention.

The launch was characterized as violent behavior by Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and US President Joe Biden reaffirmed Washington's ironclad commitment to Japan's defense during a phone call with Kishida. White House spokesperson John Kirby later on Tuesday said it was clearly destabilizing.

People in the north, including those on Hokkaido island and in the city of Aomori, woke up to the sound of sirens and SMS warnings that said: North Korea appears to have launched a missile. Please evacuate into buildings or underground on Tuesday as the missile passed over Japan.

The UN states that North Korea is not permitted to test its nuclear or ballistic missile capabilities. Additionally, it is against international rules to launch missiles without prior notice or consultation toward or over other nations, as per BBC.

According to some observers, the North Korean missile launch was its most provocative weapon display this year as it works to build a fully functional nuclear arsenal capable of posing a danger to the US mainland and its allies in an effort to extract concessions from those nations.

This year, North Korea has conducted around 40 missile tests spread across roughly 20 launch occasions because its leader, Kim Jong Un, is unwilling to resume nuclear diplomacy with the United States. The United States strongly condemned North Korea for its dangerous and reckless choice to launch what it dubbed a long-range ballistic missile over Japan.

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North Korea's Recent Nuclear Test to Japan

The missile's range was formerly claimed to be intermediate or greater by South Korea and Japan. According to some experts, if the launch involved a long-range missile, it may have been a test of a weapon that might have been used to target the US heartland.

North Korea has conducted five rounds of weapons tests in the previous ten days, including the launch. The testing frenzy appears to be in response to two rounds of military exercises that took place off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula last week, one between Washington and Seoul and the other between Washington, Seoul, and Tokyo, Daily Mail reported.

The missile may have been the Hwasong-12, which North Korea unveiled in 2017 as part of a plan to attack US military assets in Guam, claims Kim Dong-yup, a retired South Korean Navy officer.

As the three countries demonstrate their combined military might, fighter jets from the United States and Japan also engaged in joint exercises over the Sea of Japan. On September 23, a US aircraft carrier arrived at a port in South Korea for the first time since 2018.

During this time, the US, South Korea, and Japan have also conducted joint drills, and US Vice President Kamala Harris visited the heavily guarded border between the Koreas. Despite years of US-led sanctions, North Korea continues to develop its missile and nuclear weapons programs. Kim Jong Un has demonstrated no desire to resume the unsuccessful diplomatic course he took with Trump.

The offer from South Korea to stimulate the economy in exchange for the North giving up nuclear weapons was rejected by his influential sister, as per The Scottish Sun.

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