North Korea fired more than 10 short-range ballistic missiles toward waters east of the Korean Peninsula on Thursday, prompting an emergency security meeting in Seoul as reduced U.S.-South Korean military exercises approached their scheduled conclusion.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
North Korea launched more than 10 short-range ballistic missiles from the Pyongyang area on Thursday, triggering an emergency security response in South Korea as joint military exercises involving U.S. and South Korean forces neared an early end.
South Korea’s presidential office condemned the launches and directed the country’s military to maintain full readiness during the remaining joint exercises with the United States.
The missiles traveled approximately 300 kilometers, or 186 miles, before heading into waters east of the Korean Peninsula, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.
South Korea’s presidential office called an emergency security meeting involving officials from the defense ministry and military authorities following the launches. Participants reviewed the country’s military response posture, evaluated the potential security consequences and discussed additional steps that could be required.
“The ballistic missile launch is a grave act that violates U.N. Security Council resolutions,” the presidential office said, while calling on Pyongyang to immediately stop such activity.
Japan also detected what appeared to be a ballistic missile launch by North Korea.
The Japanese government and coast guard said a projectile had been fired toward the sea and had already fallen. NHK reported that the missile appeared to have landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
The launches came as the latest U.S.-South Korean military exercises were being shortened and were scheduled to conclude Friday.
President Donald Trump ordered a substantial reduction in U.S. participation in the drills and said he wants to revive diplomatic engagement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
The reduced American presence, however, has not eased criticism from Pyongyang.
Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of Kim Jong Un, said Wednesday that Washington’s “hostile policy” toward North Korea remained unchanged because the military exercises were continuing despite the reduction.
Thursday’s missile launches appeared to reinforce that message.
Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, said the timing suggested Pyongyang intended to demonstrate that Kim Yo Jong’s statement one day earlier was “not mere rhetoric.”
Yang said the launches may have served several objectives at once.
They could have been intended to register North Korea’s opposition to the ongoing military exercises, express displeasure over recent discussion surrounding the country’s nuclear arsenal and warn foreign governments against involvement in or speculation about Pyongyang’s national security decisions.
“It is a message that matters concerning North Korea’s security are for North Korea to decide,” Yang said.
He added that North Korea may also have used the launches as an opportunity to test improvements to its missile systems.
The latest escalation unfolded as China also weighed in on tensions surrounding the Korean Peninsula.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who visited Seoul this week, urged South Korea not to align itself exclusively with either Beijing or Washington.
Wang also argued that reducing tensions would require the United States to abandon what he described as its “hostile” policy toward North Korea.
The launches nevertheless underscored the continuing divide between Pyongyang and Washington despite Trump’s stated interest in restoring diplomacy with Kim.
Although the United States reduced its involvement in the joint exercises and the drills were scheduled to finish Friday, North Korea continued to characterize the military activity as evidence that Washington’s broader posture toward the country had not changed.
South Korean authorities responded by keeping forces on alert while assessing whether the barrage represented primarily a political signal, a weapons-development exercise or preparation for additional military activity.
Original article
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