SEOUL (Al Jazeera) – North Korea has test-fired eight short-range ballistic missiles towards the sea off its east coast, a day after South Korea and the United States wrapped up naval drills in the Philippine Sea.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missiles were fired from the Sunan area of the North Korean capital, Pyongyang, on Sunday.
“North Korea fired an unidentified ballistic missile(s) into the East Sea,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Sunday morning, referring to the Sea of Japan.
The Japanese coast guard also said “possible ballistic missile(s)” had been launched from North Korea, citing the country’s Defense Ministry.
They flew between 110 km-600 km (70-370 miles) at altitudes between 25 km to 90 km.
The launch was North Korea’s 18th round of missile tests in 2022 alone – a streak that has included the country’s first demonstrations of intercontinental ballistic missiles in nearly five years.
South Korean and U.S. officials say there are signs that North Korea is also pressing ahead with preparations at its nuclear testing ground in the northeastern town of Punggye-ri. The North’s next nuclear test would be its seventh since 2006 and the first since it claimed to have detonated a thermonuclear bomb to fit on its ICBMs in September 2017.
Last month, North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un said he would “strengthen and develop” his country’s nuclear forces at the “highest possible” speed.
U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration has failed to restart diplomatic talks with Pyongyang as tensions escalate.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump attempted to court Pyongyang. But even though he met with the North Korean leader three times, he refused to relieve any of the sanctions in return for the several steps taken by Pyongyang toward denuclearization. That hampered further diplomacy between Pyongyang and Washington and prompted Kim to announce an end to a moratorium on the country’s missile tests.
North Korea, which has been under rounds of crushing UN sanctions since 2006 over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs, has ramped up missile launches this year, including the launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at full range for the first time since 2017.
China and Russia have voiced opposition to further sanctions by the United Nations Security Council against North Korea.