North Korea, on Wednesday, fired three ballistic missiles toward the sea of Japan, Seoul's ministry said. The latest launches also came after the leaders of South Korea and the United States agreed to consider expanded military exercises to deter North Korean nuclear threats during President Joe Biden's visit to Seoul last weekend.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that it had "detected at around 0600 (2100 GMT), 0637 and 0642 the firings of ballistic missiles launched from Sunan area," an AFP report reads. This is North Korea's first weapons firings in about two weeks as the country makes a much-disputed claim that its first domestic COVID-19 outbreak is weakening.
The missiles included a suspected Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM), according to Japan and South Korea's governments.
South Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol will meet the National Security Council to discuss the launches, his office said. The launches were North Korea's 17th round of missile firings this year. Experts have said North Korea's testing is aimed at modernizing its weapons arsenal and at applying pressure on its rivals amid long-dormant nuclear diplomacy.
During his visit to Seoul, Biden met with Suk-yeol and discussed increasing joint military exercises that had been scaled down due to Covid-19.
– With PTI inputs
