On Monday, North Korea launched at least one ballistic missile, as reported by the South Korean military. This occurred just hours after a separate late-night launch involving a short-range missile.
Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff stated, “North Korea has fired an unidentified ballistic missile toward the East Sea,” referring to the body of water also known as the Sea of Japan.
The Japanese government, via X (formerly known as Twitter), conveyed that North Korea had fired “what seems to be a ballistic missile,” providing no additional details.
The launch follows South Korea’s announcement that it detected the launch of a short-range ballistic missile from the Pyongyang area late Sunday night.
The missile covered a distance of approximately 570 kilometers (354 miles) before landing in the East Sea, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). Seoul, Washington, and Tokyo have been closely coordinating information sharing regarding North Korea’s ballistic missile activities.
In the previous year, North Korea declared itself an “irreversible” nuclear power and has consistently asserted its commitment to maintaining its nuclear program, considering it crucial for its survival.
In the past month, Pyongyang successfully deployed a military spy satellite into orbit, claiming that it was already providing imagery of significant US and South Korean military installations.