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Recordings of a North Korean missile test on South Korean television (in March)
Photo: Ahn Young-joon / AP
According to South Korean information, North Korea has again tested a missile.
Pyongyang fired an unidentified projectile east of the Korean peninsula into the sea in the direction of Japan, the South Korean military announced on Tuesday.
North Korea had tested missiles several times in the past few weeks.
At the end of September, Pyongyang last reported the successful test of a hypersonic missile.
If the North Korean information is correct, the internationally isolated country would have reached a further stage in upgrading its arsenal.
Hypersonic missiles are extremely fast and flexible, which makes their destruction by missile defense systems very difficult.
Numerous Western states had strongly condemned the alleged hypersonic missile test.
The internationally largely isolated North Korea is subject to strict US and UN sanctions because of its nuclear and missile program.
According to the South Korean military, the new test took place during the opening of the International Aviation and Defense Exhibition (Adex) in Seoul. The launch of the rocket took place during a meeting of the intelligence chiefs of the USA, South Korea and Japan as part of Adex in Seoul, where the stalemate with North Korea was to be discussed, among other topics, reported the South Korean news agency Yonhap, citing government circles. South Korea's largest defense trade show will showcase next-generation combat aircraft and helicopters, drones and weapons, as well as space rockets and civilian space products in the capital.
The West wants North Korea with its ruler Kim Jong Un to dismantle its arsenals of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles.
The leadership in Pyongyang is pressing for relief in the US sanctions against the communist country.
as / Reuters / dpa / AFP