TOKYO, August 28. /TASS/. North Korea, which conducts nuclear tests and has ballistic missiles, continues posing a threat to Tokyo despite a number of positive trends on the Korean Peninsula, the Japanese Defense Ministry’s annual White Paper released on Tuesday said.
"Since 2016, North Korea has willfully conducted three nuclear tests and launched as many as 40 ballistic missiles. These military trends in North Korea pose an unprecedentedly serious and imminent threat to Japan’s security, and significantly damage the peace and security of the region and the international community," the document says. "It is highly significant that Chairman Kim Jong-un reiterated his intension for the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and made a clear promise to do so in a written document. It is important to closely monitor specific actions by North Korea to eliminate nuclear and missile capabilities."
Pyongyang appears to "possess and deploy several hundred Nodong missiles capable of reaching almost every part of Japan," according to the document. Given North Korea’s advancements in the development and operational capabilities of nuclear weapons and missiles through repeated nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches to date, "there is no change in our basic recognition concerning the threat of North Korea's nuclear weapons and missiles."
The historic meeting between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump took place at the Capella Hotel on Singapore’s Sentosa Island on June 12. The parties signed a joint document, in which Pyongyang made a commitment to denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula in return for US security guarantees. Trump pledged to meet Pyongyang’s demand to halt joint military drills with South Korea.
The Japanese Defense Ministry’s White Paper is published annually. The 500-page report outlines Tokyo’s approaches to major security issues.