North Korea has justified its recent missile launches as a self-defense measure against the US.
According to the state news agency KCNA, a spokesman for the national aviation authority said the missile tests were a “defense of national security and regional peace from direct US military threats that have persisted for more than half a century.” It was also said that the missile tests would not pose a threat to the immediate neighboring countries in the region.
Despite strong protests, North Korea has repeatedly fired ballistic missiles in recent weeks. On Tuesday, the country also had a medium-range missile fly over the Japanese archipelago for the first time in five years. Meanwhile, the United States deployed its nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan to the waters east of the Korean Peninsula on Wednesday.
UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from testing ballistic missiles of any range, which, depending on the design, can also carry a nuclear warhead.
