Japan orders SDF to shoot down North Korean missile

[yuiyoshida]

Japan on Wednesday condemned Pyongyang’s plan to launch a space rocket, calling it a thinly disguised test of a long-distance ballistic missile.

The government ordered Aegis ballistic missile defense warships of the Maritime Self-Defense Force and land-based Patriot PAC-3 rocket units to respond should projections show components falling in Japanese territory.

“This will effectively mean the firing of a ballistic missile. It would be a clear violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions and a grave, provocative act against the security of our country,” Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a Lower House session Wednesday.

“Japan, in cooperation with the United States and South Korea, will strongly urge North Korea to refrain from (conducting) the launch,” Abe said.

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/02/03/national/anger-sanctions-threats-greet-north-korea-rocket-launch-plans/#.VrJaGE8s_Mo

[jeff47]

1. Yay. This could get "exciting". (nt)