Japan Defense Min Hamada claims North Korea missile launch is longest yet

Japan’s Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada told reporters that the missile launched Tuesday is believed to have a range of an intermediate-range ballistic missile or longer.

Japan’s Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada told reporters that the missile launched Tuesday is believed to have a range of an intermediate-range ballistic missile or longer. The flight distance of estimated 4,600 kilometres is believed to be “the longest” among the past North Korea-launched missiles, Hamada said.

He said one launched Tuesday could be the same as the Hwasong-12 missile that North has fired four times in the past.

So far, no damage reported from aircraft or ships in the affected area, he said.

Hamada said that launching a missile flying over Japan not only threatens ships and aircraft in the area but is also “an extremely serious problem for the safety of the residents in the area beneath the expected flight path of the missile.”

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