S.Korea, U.S., Japan to Boost Tracking of N.Korean Missiles

South Korea, the U.S. and Japan will boost tracking of North Korean missiles in real time by linking their radar systems, officials said Tuesday.

A senior presidential official told reporters, "Currently, the militaries of the three countries are building the system." 

They made the agreement at a trilateral summit in Phnom Penh in November last year.

This includes data on the missile launch location, flight direction and expected point of impact.

"Consultations on concrete details are ongoing, and at this point there isn't anything specific that has been decided," a Defense Ministry spokesman told reporters.

One possibility would be for the U.S. South Pacific Command's radar system to serve as an intermediary because South Korean and Japanese systems cannot be linked directly since they are not formally military allies. 

They can use the Trilateral Information Sharing Arrangement signed in 2014 as a legal framework.

The three leaders meet again at the G7 summit in Japan next week.