Japan Slams North Korea For Exploiting Trump's Remarks About Missile Tests - Reports

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th August, 2019) Japan criticized North Korea for using recent remarks by US President Donald Trump about Pyongyang's short-range missile tests to drive a wedge between Tokyo and Washington, Japanese media reported on Monday, citing a defense ministry official.

On Sunday, a North Korean foreign ministry official was quoted as saying by the Korean Central news Agency (KCNA) that "even the US president made a remark which in effect recognizes the self-defensive rights of a sovereign state." Pyongyang's statement came after Trump played down North Korea's latest missile tests, saying that these missiles were short-range and "very standard," and that "a lot of other countries test that kind of missile also.

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The NHK broadcaster reported that Tokyo claimed Pyongyang was using Trump's statement to cause division between Japan and the United States.

Japan's Defense Ministry stressed that, despite the US president's remarks, Tokyo and Washington had the same position on the North Korean issue and agreed to cooperate to make Pyongyang dismantle all types of its ballistic missiles, according to the agency.

KCNA reported that Kim supervised Saturday's test-firing of an unspecified new weapon amid the ongoing US-South Korea joint military drills.