North Korea fires ballistic missile amid rising animosities

By HYUNG-JIN KIM, KIM TONG-HYUNG and MARI YAMAGUCHI
Associated Press

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward its eastern waters on Wednesday. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that the missile was fired from the North’s capital region and flew to the waters off its eastern coast. The Japanese Coast Guard urged vessels traveling off Japanese coasts to stay away from any possible fragments. The launch comes days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to bolster his nuclear arsenal and threatened to use them against rivals. The launch came six days before a new conservative South Korean president takes office. North Korea has a history of raising animosities with weapons tests when Seoul and Washington inaugurate new governments.