North Korea Missile Launch: Ballistic Missiles Fired After US-South Korea-Japan Drills

North Korea fired several ballistic missiles into the sea off its eastern coast on Saturday, South Korea’s military said, a day after South Korea, the United States and Japan concluded five days of joint maritime exercises focused on North Korea.

According to Al Jazeera, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) detected several missiles being launched from North Korea’s eastern coastal area near Wonsan at about 5:20am on Saturday (20:20 GMT on Friday). The missiles travelled about 250 kilometres (155 miles). Seoul said it had raised its surveillance posture and was closely exchanging information on the launches with the United States and Japan.

South Korea’s presidential National Security Office also convened an emergency security meeting involving the Defence Ministry, the JCS and other relevant agencies following the launches.

The US Pacific Command said the launch event did not pose an immediate threat to US territory or its allies. Washington also reaffirmed its commitment to the defence of South Korea and its other allies in the region.

Missiles Launched After Joint Drills

The launches came a day after South Korea completed five days of joint maritime exercises with the US and Japan.

Hours after the exercises started, North Korean Defence Minister Kim Song Gi criticised the drills and warned that Pyongyang was capable of taking “strong and reflective countermeasures from the standpoint of power”.

North Korea has long condemned US-South Korea joint exercises as rehearsals for an invasion and has often staged missile launches around the drills, Al Jazeera reported.

Late last month, North Korea also criticised plans for the so-called Freedom Edge exercises in international waters off South Korea, describing them as a “threat” to Pyongyang and other countries in the region.

Previous missile launch in August

North Korea also fired a barrage of missiles into the sea on August 20, despite an overture from US President Donald Trump, who said he planned to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this year.

According to Al Jazeera, the August launch took place while South Korea and the US were conducting a shorter version of their annual Ulchi Freedom Shield military exercises.

The exercises had been scaled back following an order from Trump, who described the drills as “inappropriate and hostile” towards North Korea. The decision alarmed US allies in the region.