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Tensions on the Korean Peninsula

North Korea confirms successful missile test — state media

According to earlier reports from the South Korean media, several anti-ship missiles were launched from the outskirts of the coastal city of Wonsan

© AP Photo/Lee Jin-man

PYONGYANG, June 9. /TASS/. North Korea confirmed on Friday that its Thursday missile launch was successful and was aimed at testing a new cruise anti-ship missile, the state KCNA news agency reported.

"The missiles hit all designated targets" in the Sea of Japan, the agency said, adding that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the test launch on the republic’s eastern coast.

TENSIONS ON THE KOREAN PENINSULA

Simultaneously, a new mobile launcher was also tested.

According to earlier reports by the South Korean media, several anti-ship missiles were launched from the outskirts of the coastal city of Wonsan. They flew for about 200 kilometers and splashed down in the Sea of Japan, outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for North Korea’s interior ministry lashed at US and international sanctions against the Communist state, adding that such measures would only push the country to further develop its nuclear potential.

In the statement, made in response to US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s remarks during his visit to New Zealand, the spokesman criticized the US top diplomat’s "trite and unconvincing reasons for tightening sanctions against North Corea."

"Washington has to understand that military threats by the United States and loud calls for sanctions will only make North Korea to engage more actively in developing its nuclear forces," the Rodong Sinmun paper quoted the official as saying, adding that Tillerson "shows great incompetence regarding North Korea’s capabilities and seems to be losing his grip of reality.".

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Situation on the Korean Peninsula

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