Seoul: North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea east of its coast Monday in its second missile test in three days, prompting Tokyo to request an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council.
Monday’s tests continue a tit-for-tat exchange that began Saturday, and follow a year in which North Korea launched more than 70 missiles, the most ever. Pyongyang has recently escalated nuclear threats and threatened an “unprecedentedly” strong response to annual U.S.-South Korea military drills, which it views as preparation for an invasion.
South Korea’s military said it detected two missile launches Monday morning from a town on North Korea’s west coast, just north of the capital, Pyongyang.
Japan said both missiles landed in waters outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone and that no damage to aircraft or vessels in the area was reported.
North Korea’s state media said long-range artillery units fired two rockets across the country and into the sea Monday morning, in what South Korea’s military called confirmation of Seoul and
Tokyo’s observations. The official Korean Central News Agency said the North Korean artillery rounds simulated strikes on targets up to 395 kilometers (245 miles) away.
The North said the launches involved the new 600-millimeter multiple rocket launcher system, which could be armed with “tactical” nuclear weapons for battlefield use.
South Korean defense officials describe the weapons system as a short-range ballistic missile.
According to Japanese and South Korean assessments, the North Korean missiles flew at a
maximum altitude of 50-100 kilometers (30-60 miles) and a distance of 340-400 kilometers (210-250 miles).
Those distances suggest that most of South Korea is within striking range.