Okinawa on full missile alert / SDF prepares to intercept falling debris with Aegis, PAC-3


NAHA--Tensions ran high in Okinawa Prefecture on Friday as the Self-Defense Forces, on orders from Defense Minister Satoshi Morimoto, made preparations to intercept a North Korean long-range ballistic missile if necessary.

The alert was reminiscent of the run-up to a failed missile launch in April that Pyongyang claimed was intended to put a satellite into orbit.

A local government in the prefecture held an emergency meeting as the SDF went on full alert, deploying three Aegis-equipped destroyers as well as surface-to-air Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) missiles to prepare for the possible fall of missile debris during the announced launch period from Dec. 10-22.

The Ishigaki municipal government convened an emergency meeting at the crisis-management headquarters Friday morning.

Mayor Yoshitaka Nakayama instructed anxious-looking officials to "take all possible measures to protect the safety of people in the city."

The security measures may affect fisheries in
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