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North Korea launches two missiles toward sea after US-South Korea drills

Published:Saturday | October 8, 2022 | 3:02 PM
The US carrier USS Ronald Reagan is escorted as it arrives in Busan, South Korea on September 23, 2022. North Korea warned Saturday, October 8, the US redeployment of an aircraft carrier near the Korean Peninsula is causing a “considerably huge negative splash” in regional security, as it defended its recent missile tests as a “righteous reaction” to intimidating military drills between its rivals.(AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has fired two short-range ballistic missiles toward its eastern waters, the latest of its recent barrage of weapons tests, a day after the North warned that the redeployment of a US aircraft carrier near the Korean Peninsula was inflaming regional tensions.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that it detected two missile launches Sunday between 1:48 a.m. and 1:58 a.m. (South Korea time) from the North's eastern coastal city of Munchon.

It said South Korea's military has boosted its surveillance posture and maintains a readiness in close coordination with the United States.

Japanese Vice Defense Minister Toshiro Ino also confirmed the launches, saying the North's testing activities are “absolutely unacceptable” as they threaten regional and international peace and security.

Ino said the weapons could be submarine-launched ballistic missiles. “We are continuing to analyse details of the missiles, including a possibility that they might have been launched from the sea,” Ino said.

North Korea's pursuit of an ability to fire missiles from a submarine would constitute an alarming development for its rivals because it's harder to detect such launches in advance.

North Korea was believed to have last tested a missile launch from a submarine in May.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida separately instructed officials to gather and analyse all information they could and expedite any updates about the tests to the public.

His office said it also was seeking to ensure the safety of all aircraft and ships in waters around Japan while preparing for any contingencies.

The Japanese coast guard said it has warned ships around the country's coasts to be vigilant and avoid the area.

The launch, the North's seventh round of weapons tests in two weeks, came hours after the United States and South Korea wrapped up a new round of naval drills off the Korean Peninsula's east coast.

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