North Korea's missiles landed in Japan's EEZ: Defense minister

Move follows South's sub-launched missile test, escalating arms race on peninsula

North Korea leader Kim Jong Un attends a parade held to mark the 73rd founding anniversary of the country at Kim Il Sung square in Pyongyang in this undated image supplied by the North's Korean Central News Agency on Sept. 9. © KCNA/Reuters

ANDREW SHARP, FRANCESCA REGALADO and KIM JAEWON, Nikkei staff writers

September 15, 2021 12:55 JST

Updated on September 15, 2021 22:49 JST

TOKYO/SEOUL -- North Korea fired two ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan on Wednesday, South Korea's military said, raising regional tensions just days after the isolated nation said it tested a cruise missile.

The missiles are believed to have landed in Japan's exclusive economic zone, Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi told reporters, correcting an earlier statement by the Japan Coast Guard that said the projectiles had missed the area. They would be the first North Korean missiles to land in Japan's EEZ since October 2019.