CAUGHT IN LINE OF POTENTIAL ATTACK, JAPAN DENOUNCES GUAM THREAT

The missiles that North Korea has threatened to fire into the waters near the U.S. territory of Guam would fly over Japan — “3,356.7 km for 1,065 seconds” — about 18 minutes, according to the North Koreans. Japanese government leaders denounced the threat and residents in the three prefectures named as on the missiles’ flight path expressed fear and anger. “Honestly, I didn’t pay much attention to (the missile issue)," said Eihachiro Matsuzawa of the fishermen’s cooperative in Kochi, one of the prefectures. “Most of us fish for living so it would harm our business if we couldn’t go out to sea because of these missile launches. What’s the point of them? It makes me angry,” he said. Generally, the response of the Japanese public to the crisis has been muted. Another scenario that has been suggested is that rather than using missiles, North Korea might cyberattack Japan, by sending a high-altitude electromagnetic pulse over Tokyo, temporarily turning off the lights. In that instance, some experts conclude, Japan might join with some of its neighbours to urge Washington to cut a deal with Kim, averting further military conflict by accepting North Korea as a nuclear power.