As the US tries to bring about more nuclear talks, North Korea tests ballistic missile

North Korea has reportedly tested another ballistic missile, after agreeing to try resume denuclearization talks with the United States.

What happened now?

North Korea launched the missile Wednesday morning from the city of Wonsan on its east coast. The missile flew 450 miles toward Japan before landing in the ocean. The Japanese government said that the missile did not cause any damage. The BBC reported that the missiles could have travelled as far as 1,900 km (1,181 miles), putting all of both Japan and South Korea well within its range. This is the 11th such test by North Korea just this year.

The South Korean government said that they were trying to determine what happened "with the emphasis on the possibility that today's launch by North Korea is a test of a SLBM [Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile]."

"Such a ballistic missile launch is in breach of U.N. Security Council resolutions and we strongly protest and condemn it," Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said, according to Japan's Kyodo News. He added that his government would "work closely with the United States and the international community, and do all we can to protect the lives of Japanese people while remaining highly vigilant."

But what about the talks?

Just a day earlier, the U.S. State Department announced that U.S. and North Korean officials would resume talks "within a week." President Donald Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un had previously held two summits meant to bring about better relations between the two nations and the denuclearization of North Korea. However, these talks broke down when Trump refused to agree to Kim's demand to lift all U.S. sanctions on North Korea.

Even when the U.S. and North Korea were having talks, the U.N., the United States, and groups with knowledge of the region all suspected North Korea of continuing to expand its nuclear program while claiming to have halted it.