(Provisional translation by an external company for reference purpose only)
Today, at around 1:24 p.m., North Korea launched a suspected ballistic missile. It has already fallen, and the area it fell was outside Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ). Further details are currently being analyzed. The Prime Minister issued the following instructions: 1. dedicate maximum effort to gather and analyze information, and provide the public with information in a timely and appropriate manner, 2. ensure the safety of aircraft, vessels, and other assets, and 3. take all possible measures for precaution, including readiness for contingencies. In response to the Prime Minister’s instructions, I issued the following instructions through the private secretary: 1. make every effort to gather and analyze information in close cooperation with the U.S., the Republic of Korea (ROK), and other countries, and 2. continue to take all possible measures to conduct surveillance in readiness for the occurrence of contingencies. The Ministry of Defense will continue to gather and analyze related information and take all possible measures to conduct surveillance and other responses with a sense of urgency.