North Korean missile (archive)Reuters
North Korea launches a ballistic missile after US, South Korea drills
South Korea’s military says the North launched a ballistic missile toward the its eastern waters.
North Korea launched a ballistic missile toward the North’s eastern waters on Monday (local time), South Korea’s military said, according to The Associated Press.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the launch was made on Monday morning, but gave no further details, including how far the weapon traveled.
The launch came two days after South Korea, the US and Japan ended their new multidomain trilateral drills that North Korea calls a provocation.
The launch is the North’s first weapons firing in five days. Last Wednesday, North Korea launched what it called a multiwarhead missile in the first known launch of a developmental, advanced weapon meant to defeat US and South Korean missile defenses.
North Korea said the launch was successful, but South Korea dismissed the North’s claim as deception to cover up a failed launch.
North Korea, which has tested dozens of missiles in the last year including its first intercontinental ballistic missiles since 2017, has recently upped the rhetoric.
In January, the country launched a hypersonic missile. In response, South Korea, the United States and Japan carried out joint naval drills in waters off southern Jeju Island.
North Korea then announced it had tested an “underwater nuclear weapon system” in response to the joint naval exercises.
In April, North Korea successfully test-fired a new mid- to long-range solid-fuel hypersonic missile.
Weeks later, the country fired what appeared to be a ballistic missile which fell into the sea.
