N Korea fires short-range missile: report

TOKYO: North Korea fired a short-range missile from its coast into the Sea of Japan (East Sea) on Tuesday, a Japanese media report said.   

The missile was fired shortly after 3:00 pm (0600 GMT), public broadcaster NHK said, quoting Japanese government officials. Spokesmen for the Japanese defence and foreign ministries could not immediately confirm the report.   

It would be the third time since late last month that North Korea has fired missiles, according to other countries in the region.   

On June 7, North Korea launched two missiles with a range of about 100 kilometres off its coast. Other countries played down the tests, saying they were routine.   

The latest tests would come just after North Korea signalled it was ready to shut down its nuclear reactor under a six-nation deal.