Even as the defence forces of the US and South Korea are conducting their annual springtime exercises involving thousands of troops, North Korea fired nearly 10 ballistic missiles toward the eastern sea on Saturday. The move, which could be perceived as a show-of-force signal, also comes amid the escalating war in the Middle East, and reports that the US has redeployed some air-defence assets from South Korea to support operations against Iran.
The annual springtime exercise of the US and South Korea, called Freedom Shield (FS), one of the two command post exercises that the two countries hold, started on March 9 and will continue till 19. The other exercise, Ulchi Freedom Shield, is held in August.
The missiles were fired from an area near the North Korean capital of Pyongyang, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said, without mentioning how far the missiles flew.
The missiles landed in waters outside the country's exclusive economic zone, Japan's defence ministry said, reported news agency PTI.
The provocative move comes amid the rapid expansion of North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme in recent years, including systems capable of threatening US allies in Asia and long-range missiles that could potentially reach the the US, heightening security concerns in South Korea.
The military has intensified surveillance and remains on high alert for potential additional launches, while closely coordinating and sharing information with the US and Japan, North Korean officials stated.
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North Korea has long claimed joint US–South Korea military drills as rehearsals for an invasion and has often used such drills as a pretext to escalate its own military demonstrations and weapons tests.
In previous years, North Korea has carried out multiple salvo launches of missiles and artillery, describing them as simulations of nuclear strikes against targets in South Korea.
Earlier, according to a report by news agency AP, Col. Jang Do-young, public affairs director of South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, had said the Freedom Shield will not include scenarios simulating a response to a North Korean nuclear attack, but will feature training designed to “deter nuclear threats.”