North Korea Fires More Than 10 Short-Range Ballistic Missiles Toward the East Sea
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missiles were launched from the Wonsan area on Thursday, six days after Seoul proposed military talks. Japan said a suspected missile fell outside its exclusive economic zone.
North Korea fired more than 10 short-range ballistic missiles from the Wonsan area toward the East Sea on Thursday, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. The launches took place at about 12:30 p.m. local time, according to the South Korean military.
South Korea said it increased surveillance and readiness for further launches and shared information about the launches with the United States and Japan. The launches were North Korea’s first ballistic missile firings in 17 days. On October 12, missiles launched from the Pyongyang area also flew toward the East Sea, and South Korea’s military said some traveled more than 900 kilometers.
A border dispute behind the launches
The launches came against the backdrop of a dispute over a landmine explosion in the Demilitarized Zone on September 21 that injured three South Korean soldiers. A joint South Korea-United Nations investigation earlier this month concluded that North Korea had planted the landmines more than a year ago, and Seoul called for an apology. Pyongyang rejected the finding and sent a letter to the UN Security Council this week accusing Seoul of fabricating the explosion.
North Korea’s permanent representative to the UN, Kim Song, wrote that South Korea’s claims were a “farce to evade the responsibility for the ever-escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula” and warned that violations of the country’s sovereignty could trigger self-defence. Kim Yo Jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, called South Korean demands for an apology “despicable” and rejected an offer of medical equipment from Seoul.
Talks proposal still unanswered
South Korea’s Defense Ministry formally proposed military talks on October 23. Seoul sought discussions on confirming the location of the Military Demarcation Line, restoring military communication lines, and preventing accidental clashes in border areas. North Korea had given no response to the invitation by the time of the missile launches, and no meeting date had been announced.
On October 21, Kim Yo Jong signaled that loudspeaker broadcasts directed toward South Korea would resume. North Korea was also reported to have deployed 122 mm self-propelled artillery near the front line in the western sector. Two days after the artillery and loudspeaker reports, Seoul made its talks proposal.
Japan’s Defense Ministry said North Korea had launched an object that could be a ballistic missile and assessed that it had already fallen outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone. The Japan Coast Guard said no damage to vessels had been confirmed as of 12:55 p.m., and Japan’s government assembled an emergency response team at the Prime Minister’s Office crisis management center.
The launches followed an October 27 vote at the United Nations General Assembly’s First Committee in New York. The committee adopted a nuclear disarmament resolution led by Japan with 150 votes in favor, seven against, and 25 abstentions. North Korea rejected the resolution’s position on its nuclear status.
Reporting based on coverage by Al Jazeera and Asia Daily.
