North Korea fires ballistic missiles as South Korea, US conduct joint drills
Seoul, March 14 (IANS/WISHAVWARTA) North Korea fired about 10 ballistic missiles toward the East Sea Saturday, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, in an apparent muscle-flexing as South Korea and the United States were conducting their key springtime military exercise.
The JCS said it detected the missiles launched from the Sunan area in the North at around 1:20 p.m. It marked the North’s third ballistic missile launch this year.
The missiles flew about 350 kilometres, the JCS said, adding that further analysis is underway, reports Yonhap news agency.
“Under a robust South Korea-US combined defence posture, our military is closely monitoring North Korea’s various movements, and maintains capabilities and a posture that can overwhelmingly respond to any provocation,” it added.
The latest launch came as South Korea and the United States kicked off their annual Freedom Shield exercise Monday for an 11-day run.
The North has long denounced the allies’ combined military drills as a rehearsal for an invasion, though Seoul and Washington have said the exercises are purely defensive.
Earlier this week, Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, condemned the ongoing military drills and warned of “unimaginably terrible consequences.”
The North also recently test-fired strategic cruise missiles from the Choe Hyon destroyer, with the North Korean leader underscoring the need to maintain and expand a “powerful and reliable nuclear war deterrent,” according to Pyongyang’s state media.
The North’s latest missile launch also came after Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said that US President Donald Trump remained positive about the resumption of dialogue with the North Korean leader while leaving open its timing.
The prime minister’s remarks came amid speculation that Trump could seek a meeting with Kim during his upcoming trip to China for a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump reportedly plans to travel to China from late March to early April.
North Korea last fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on January 27, which it said was aimed at testing a renewed large-calibre multiple rocket launcher system.
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