North Korea Launches A Series Of Short-Range Ballistic Missiles Into The Sea
South Korea’s military said North Korea launched “several” ballistic missiles in its latest display of advanced weapons. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that North Korea had launched a series of ballistic missiles into the sea off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff initially said the ballistic missile launch was detected in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan. Still, they later reported that Pyongyang launched several short-range missiles at around 07:30 local time on Tuesday (22:30 GMT).
“We remain fully prepared while closely exchanging North Korean ballistic missile data with the US and Japanese authorities,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, according to South Korea’s Yonhap news agency.
The South Korean military said the missiles were launched from the Saeryon area south of the North Korean capital of Pyongyang and flew a distance of about 400 kilometers (248 miles).
The Japanese government also confirmed the launch, with the Japan Coast Guard reporting that NHK News reported that a projectile landed in the sea outside Japan’s exclusive maritime economic zone.
South Korean Defense Minister Kim Jong-hyun recently warned that North Korea may step up its military displays ahead of the upcoming U.S. presidential election to attract Washington’s attention and “exaggerate its presence” through a show of force.
Last week, North Korea launched a large new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile into the sea off its east coast. North Korean state media said the Oct. 31 test was of a Hwasong-19 ICBM and described the new missile as “the world’s most powerful ICBM.”
South Korean military intelligence reported last week that North Korea has also completed preparations for its seventh nuclear test.
Tensions between North and South Korea have reached their highest level in years, with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un repeatedly boasting about his growing arsenal of ballistic missiles while also reportedly sending weapons and troops to support Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.
North Korea has denied sending soldiers to fight alongside Russia, but its vice foreign minister said any such deployment would not violate international law.
At a meeting in the South Korean capital of Seoul on Monday, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yeol and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell expressed “deep concern” about the possibility of Russia transferring nuclear or ballistic missile technology to North Korea in exchange for Pyongyang sending weapons and soldiers to join Moscow’s war on Ukraine.
Cho and Borrell said such transfers “would jeopardize international efforts to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons and threaten peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and around the world,” while calling on Pyongyang and Moscow to withdraw their troops from Russia immediately.
Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of the North Korean leader, condemned recent military exercises by Japan, South Korea and the United States as a threat to Pyongyang and said such actions justify North Korea’s nuclear capabilities, the Korean Central News Agency reported on Tuesday.
South Korea, Japan and the United States held joint air exercises on Sunday that included a U.S. B-1B bomber, South Korean F-15K and KF-16 fighter jets and Japanese F-2 jets. North Korea has been viewing the military exercises as training for an invasion of its territory.
