South Korea says North Korea fired second suspected missile in less than a week

North Korea fired what appeared to be a ballistic missile early Tuesday, Japanese and South Korean officials said.

The object landed in waters off the east coast of North Korea, near Japan’s exclusive economic zone, Japanese media reported. This is believed to be the country’s second weapons test in less than a week. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said the tests were “extremely regrettable”, while South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff issued a statement saying it was “closely monitoring” the situation “with the cooperation of the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff”. working closely with the United States.”

Nuclear negotiations between the US and North Korea are at an impasse, and on Monday several members of the United Nations Security Council, including the US and Japan, issued a joint statement. said last week’s rocket launch was a “clear violation” of several resolutions. and showed North Korea’s “determination to expand illegal weapons capabilities”.

Last week, Pyongyang said it had successfully tested a “supersonic flying warhead” that hit a target 435 miles away, a claim South Korean military officials called an exaggeration.