North Korea's launch of a "ballistic missile" violates UN Security Council resolutions, Japan said Wednesday, after what Pyongyang said was a failed attempt to put a satellite in space.
"As a ballistic missile launch like this one violates relevant UN Security Council resolutions, Japan firmly protested against North Korea and strongly condemned" the launch, Japanese government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno said.
The reclusive state on Tuesday confirmed it planned to launch what it called a military reconnaissance satellite before June 11, having told Japan of its plans a day earlier.
Because long-range rockets and space launchers share the same technology, analysts say developing the ability to put a satellite in orbit would provide Pyongyang with cover for testing banned intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).
"We cannot tolerate this kind of launch whether it is a satellite or anything else, as it violates UN resolutions," Japan's Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada told reporters.
Japan briefly activated its missile alert warning system for the southern Okinawa region on Wednesday morning.
But North Korean state media said the satellite had crashed into the sea soon after launch as an "accident occurred" during its flight.
Matsuno said the government presumed that the projectile "disappeared in the air above the Yellow Sea and that no object was put into outer space".
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said earlier Wednesday that North Korea had launched "what appears to be a ballistic missile" but that there had been no reports of damage.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Bangladesh Protests: Indian Students Narrate Worrying Situation As They Return Home
"I Think He Misses Me": Donald Trump Says Kim Jong Un Wants Him To Win US Elections North Korea Sends Trash Balloons, South Responds With Loudspeakers North Korea's Kim Jong Un Hosts Russia Military Delegation After Putin Visit Newly Married Indian-Origin Man Shot Dead In US In Suspected Road Rage This Country Was Left Untouched By Biggest-Ever IT Outage At Mamata Banerjee's Rally, Show Of Strength, A Message For Bangladesh After Announcement Of New Model, Sam Altman Says ChatGPT Needs Name Revamp KCET 2024: Fee Structure For Engineering And Architecture Courses Released Houthis Pledge "Huge" Response to Israel Strike As Gaza Violence Spreads Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.