TOKYO (Sputnik) — Tokyo sent a strong protest to Pyongyang following North Korea's long-range rocket launch, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Sunday.
"In connection with the launch of a rocket with the so-called satellite we have expressed a strong protest to North Korea through the channels of our embassy in Beijing," Suga said at a press conference.
Earlier Sunday, North Korea fired a long-range rocket, defying a UN Security Council resolution banning Pyongyang from launching rockets that may be used as long-range ballistic missiles carrying nuclear warheads. Japan’s National Security Council held a meeting shortly after the incident. The rocket flew over Japan's Okinawa prefecture.
Following the news, the office of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that Japan, in close cooperation with the international community, would not hesitate to take measures against North Korea.