Press Conference by the Chief Cabinet Secretary (Excerpt)

Opening Statement by Chief Cabinet Secretary Suga

At around 12:31 p.m. today, the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) detected seismic waves which may differ from the ordinary waveform of a natural earthquake, with an epicenter located in North Korea or in its vicinity. Based on previous examples and other considerations the Government considers that this earthquake occurred as a result of the conducting of a nuclear test by North Korea. According to the JMA the earthquake occurred at 12:29 p.m. and 57 seconds on September 3, 2017, with its epicenter at a northern latitude of 41.3 degrees and an eastern longitude of 129.1 degrees. The depth of the earthquake was measured at zero kilometers and the magnitude was estimated as being 6.1. Following this incident, the Response Office within the Prime Minister's Office for the Situation in North Korea engaged in consolidation of information, and an emergency meeting among the team of director-general level officials of the relevant ministries and agencies was held. The Prime Minister has issued three instructions relating to this matter, which are (1) Conduct information gathering and analysis by the ministries and agencies concerned with a sense of urgency, (2) Provide the public with accurate information, and (3) Collaborate with the countries concerned including the United States, the Republic of Korea, China and Russia. Based on these instructions the Government is continuing to collect and analyze information. Further details concerning the earthquake will be announced later by the JMA.