KYODO NEWS - Aug 29, 2017 - 16:30 | All, Urgent, World

North Korea fired a ballistic missile early Tuesday that flew over Japan's northernmost main island of Hokkaido before falling into the Pacific Ocean, in defiance of international sanctions and criticism of Pyongyang's continued nuclear and missile development.

The missile launch came amid ongoing U.S.-South Korea military exercises on the Korean Peninsula through Thursday which North Korea has strongly protested against. The North fired three short-range missiles off its east coast on Saturday.

The launch prompted the leaders of Japan and the United States to renew their commitment to increasing pressure on North Korea to discourage it from further provocations.

In a teleconference after the missile launch, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Donald Trump agreed the latest launch makes it clear that now is not the right time for dialogue with North Korea and that it is necessary to increase pressure, a senior Japanese official said.

Trump said the United States stands 100 percent behind its ally Japan, the official added.

The two leaders also shared the view that the roles of China and Russia are very important, according to the official.

Ahead of talks with Trump, Abe said the missile's crossing Japan posed "an unprecedented, serious and grave security threat" and "could significantly undermine peace and stability in the region." He said Tokyo has lodged a protest with Pyongyang.

Abe said Japan will demand further pressure on North Korea in cooperation with the international community to address the issue. Following the latest missile launch, the U.N. Security Council has started arrangements to hold an emergency meeting at the request of Japan, South Korea and the United States.

The prime minister also said Japan had been closely monitoring the missile from its launch and taken full measures to ensure the safety of the Japanese people.

North Korea last fired a long-range Taepodong-2 missile over the southwestern island prefecture of Okinawa in February last year, while a similar one traveled over a main island of the Japanese archipelago in April 2009.

North Korean's latest missile was launched around 5:58 a.m. eastward from Sunan in its capital Pyongyang and fell into the sea 1,180 kilometers east of Cape Erimo, the Japanese government said.

It flew more than 2,700 km at a maximum altitude of around 550 km, possibly breaking into three before falling into the sea, it added.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said there were no immediate reports of damage to Japanese territory.

Defense Minster Itsunori Onodera told reporters the missile did not fly on a highly "lofted" trajectory and could be the same type as intermediate-range missile Hwasong-12, which Pyongyang fired on May 14.

Onodera said the Self-Defense Forces did not intercept the missile as they judged there was no possibility it would land in Japan.

Tensions have been running high since North Korea said earlier this month it is considering launching ballistic missiles over the Japanese archipelago into waters near the U.S. territory of Guam in the western Pacific. The warning came after Pyongyang test-fired two intercontinental ballistic missiles in July.

The defense ministry has deployed Air Self-Defense Force Patriot Advanced Capability-3 missile interceptors in the western Japan prefectures of Shimane, Hiroshima and Kochi, over which Pyongyang said its missiles would fly, as well as Ehime located between Hiroshima and Kochi. PAC-3 systems are not regularly installed in those regions.

Foreign Minister Taro Kono said Pyongyang "appeared to have held back" from firing a missile toward Guam due to fear of U.S. retaliation, sending it over Hokkaido instead.

Following the missile launch, the Japanese and South Korean governments held their respective National Security Council meetings to discuss the issue.

Later Tuesday, Japan's ruling and opposition parties decided to hold a meeting of a House of Representatives committee on Wednesday to be attended by defense and foreign ministers, for adoption of a resolution condemning North Korea's repeated provocative acts, according to lawmakers.

In Washington, the U.S. Defense Department confirmed that a North Korean missile flew over Japan. The United States is "still in the process of assessing this launch," the Pentagon said.

In Japan, the missile launch was announced on the government's satellite-based J-Alert system, which advised people in the area to take precautions. Some railway companies from eastern to northern Japan briefly halted their operations, but there was no influence on flights to and from New Chitose Airport, a major gateway to Hokkaido.

Yoji Koda, a retired vice admiral of Japan's Maritime Self-Defense Force, said the choice of flight path seemed to be an effort by North Korea to lessen the likelihood of retaliation from the United States.

If a missile were to fall into the sea near Guam, "the U.S. response would be severe, so it seems (North Korea) has fired it in a different direction so as not to provoke the United States," he said.

"Rather than a provocation of Japan, (North Korea's) main target is the United States," he added.

He said information known so far about the missile suggests it could be a Hwasong-12, the same type North Korea threatened to launch toward Guam.

The launch came after North Korea fired short-range missiles on Saturday.