The Philippine government has expressed serious concern over the launching of intermediate-range ballistic missiles by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK).
In a statement on Thursday, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) also “strongly denounced” Pyongyang’s launch of ballistic missiles, which was reportedly the first since it tested long-range ballistic missiles in November of last year.
According to the DFA, such “provocative actions" significantly undermine economic progress, as well as peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula and the Indo-Pacific region.
“We renew our call on the DPRK to promptly cease these activities and abide by all international obligations, including relevant UN Security Council Resolutions, and to commit to peaceful and constructive dialogue,” it said.
According to the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), the DPRK launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile on Monday (January 6), which flew about 1,100 km before falling into the sea off its east coast between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.
The JCS denounced Pyongyang’s recent move, which it described as a provocation that poses a serious threat to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.
Japan also expressed concern over the DPRK’s attempts to advance its weapon capabilities, while maintaining that the missile landed outside its exclusive economic zone and that there were no reports of damage to vessels or aircraft.
In a related development, the United States, through the US Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) in Hawaii, said it was “aware” of the DPRK’s ballistic missile launch and is “consulting closely” with the Republic of Korea (ROK) and Japan, as well as other regional allies and partners.
“The United States condemns these actions and calls for the DPRK to refrain from further unlawful and destabilizing acts. We have assessed that this event does not pose an immediate threat to US personnel or territory, or to our allies,” the USINDOPACOM said in a statement.
“We will continue to monitor the situation. The U.S. commitment to the defense of the ROK and Japan remains ironclad,” it added.