Ballistic missile fired from Pyongyang heads toward East Sea

A ballistic missile is launched toward the East Sea on March 27, 2023, in this file photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency the following day. [YONHAP]

North Korea fired an unspecified ballistic missile toward the East Sea in the early hours of Thursday, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Thursday morning.

The JCS announced that the missile was fired from Pyongyang. However, it is still looking into the exact type of missile and the distance it flew as of 9 a.m. Thursday.

Japan briefly issued an alert, warning the residents of Hokkaido to take shelter. However, it later corrected that the possibility of the missile launched from North Korea landing near Hokkaido was low.

The latest missile firing comes after North Korea has failed to respond to routine cross-border calls since April 7. This is the first time since October last year, when North Korea suspended the liaison line due to technical issues, that calls have gone unanswered.

The last missile fired by North Korea was a short-range ballistic missile on March 27. Thursday's missile is the ninth ballistic missile fired this year.

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]