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North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into waters off its east coast on Saturday, South Korea’s military said, marking Pyongyang’s fourth missile launch in a week and raising tensions around the Korean peninsula.
The launch comes after the South Korean, U.S. and Japanese navies held their first trilateral anti-submarine exercise in five years on Friday, and U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris visited the region this week.
The two short-range missiles were fired from Sunan, north of the North Korean capital Pyongyang, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. It has an estimated range of 350 kilometers (217.5 miles) at an altitude of 30 kilometers and a speed of Mach 6.
The Japan Coast Guard also reported that Pyongyang conducted at least two suspected ballistic missile tests. Japanese Defense Minister Toshiro Ino said the missiles flew 400 kilometers and 350 kilometers, reaching an altitude of 50 kilometers.
Tokyo has protested to North Korea through diplomatic channels, Ino said, adding that the missiles may have flown “irregular trajectories” designed to evade missile defenses.
U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said it was aware of the ballistic missile launches and assessed that they did not pose a direct threat to U.S. personnel or territory or its allies.
North Korea fired missiles around Harris’ visit to South Korea, expanding this year’s record pace of weapons tests as it increases the threat of a credible nuclear force that could strike the United States and its allies.
Pyongyang also conducted its first intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test since 2017.
read more: North Korea fires unidentified missile into East China Sea: Seoul military
Analysts believe the accelerated pace of testing is an effort to create operational weapons and to “normalize” testing in a world distracted by the Ukraine conflict and other crises.
Professor Leif-Eric Isley of Ewha University in Seoul said: “Despite its internal weaknesses and international isolation, North Korea is rapidly modernizing its weapons and taking advantage of a country that has been challenged by U.S.-China competition and Russia’s annexation of more Ukrainian territory. A divided world.”
“The Kim regime is also toughening up with the Yoon government, while South Korean politics are hobbled by infighting,” referring to the South Korean president.
Japan’s Defense Ministry said in a July report that North Korea has been firing short-range missiles with low and irregular flight trajectories, features observed since May 2019 that may have been designed to improve combat efficiency.
The UN Security Council has imposed sanctions on North Korea for its ballistic missile and nuclear tests. Pyongyang opposes moves that violate its sovereign rights to self-defense and space exploration.
North Korea has completed preparations for a nuclear test, South Korean lawmakers said on Wednesday, which could open a window between the Chinese Communist Party’s national congress in October and the U.S. midterm elections in November.
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