Japan threatens to shoot down any North Korean missile that threatens its territory

Japan has threatened to shoot down any North Korean missile that threatens its territory and has deployed ballistic missile defence units in preparation for what officials in Pyongyang say is the imminent launch of a rocket-cum-satellite.

The Guardian has reported that Japan's Defence Minister, General Nakatani, ordered the deployment of Aegis destroyers in the Sea of Japan and Patriot missile batteries on land, hours after North Korea confirmed that it was preparing to launch the satellite,an act that would inevitably use a banned long-range rocket.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called the possible launch a 'serious provocation', adding that he would work with US and South Korea to demand that Pyongyang abandon the planned launch.

UN security council resolutions banned North Korea from carrying out nuclear tests and developing its ballistic missile capabilities.(ANI)