North Korea fires ballistic missile that lands in Japan’s exclusive economic zone

LESLIE EASTMAN JUL 4, 2017 8:00 AM

North Korea fired a ballistic missile that flew into waters east of the Korean Peninsula, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.

“We confirm that North Korea has fired an unidentified ballistic missile off its eastern coast towards the East Sea from Banghyun area in Northern Pyong An Province at around 9:40 am (KST) Tuesday morning,” a South Korean military official told NBC. “The launch was immediately reported to the President Moon Jae In.”Moon ordered a National Security Council meeting after the launch, South Korean state news agency Yonhap reported, citing the Blue House — the South Korean equivalent of the White House.The meeting was to determine the country’s defense readiness against further incidents, Yonhap said.Japan’s main government spokesperson said there were no reports of damage to planes and ships in the proximity.”It flew for approximately 40 minutes and is believed to have landed within Japan’s economic exclusive zone,” he said in comments translated from Japanese by NBC News.

The launch occurred shortly after President Donald Trump wrapped up calls to the leaders of China and Japan to talk about the North Korean threat.

Trump spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe ahead of expected meetings with the leaders of Asia’s two biggest economies at a Group of 20 nations summit in Germany later this week.”Both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to a denuclearized Korean Peninsula,” the White House said of Trump’s call with Xi from his resort property in Bridgewater, New Jersey, where he is spending a long weekend….Trump has become increasingly frustrated with China’s inability to rein in North Korea, and the reference to trade was an indication the one-time New York businessman may be ready to return to his tougher-talking ways on business with Beijing after holding back in hopes it would put more pressure on Pyongyang.

There are some clear signs of President Trump’s growing frustration with China’s lack of intervention with its northern neighbor.

•  The Trump administration has blacklisted a small Chinese bank accused of illicit dealings with North Korea.
• The U.S. guided-missile destroyer Stethem sailed within 12 nautical miles of the disputed Triton Island in the South China Sea.
• The U.S. just signed a $1.42 billion dollar arms deal with the other China…Taiwan.

President Trump had this response to the new North Korean missile launch.

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