Seoul, April 8 – North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles towards the East Sea on Wednesday, according to the South Korean military, in a series of launches that followed President Lee Jae-myung expressing regret over unauthorized drone flights into North Korea.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said they detected the missiles launched from the Wonsan area in the North at around 8:50 a.m. They flew approximately 240 kilometers. This marked the North's fourth confirmed ballistic missile launch this year.
"Our military is closely monitoring North Korea's various activities under a robust South Korea-US combined defense posture and maintains the capabilities and posture to respond to any provocation in an overwhelming manner," the JCS said.
South Korean and US intelligence authorities have tracked the launch and have closely shared relevant information, it added.
The launch came just a day after the North fired an unidentified projectile from the Pyongyang area on Tuesday, which is currently under analysis by South Korean and US intelligence authorities.
The projectile, believed to have been launched Tuesday morning, disappeared shortly after it was fired, apparently due to a malfunction.
The consecutive launches came after President Lee expressed regret over unauthorized drone flights into North Korea on Monday.
At a Cabinet meeting, Lee expressed regret over the drone flights, saying that the incidents have caused unnecessary military tension with Pyongyang. His remarks came after prosecutors last week indicted three individuals accused of flying drones into North Korea between September and January, Yonhap news agency reported.
Hours after Lee's remarks, Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un, issued a statement saying that North Korea's head of state assessed Lee as having a "frank and broad-minded" attitude.
Still, she warned Seoul "should stop any reckless provocation" against Pyongyang and "refrain from any attempt at contact, instead of paying lip service to the utmost importance of peace and security."
The North last fired multiple ballistic missiles towards the East Sea on March 14, as annual springtime military drills by South Korea and the United States were underway. State media reported the following day that the North conducted a firepower strike drill involving 600-millimetre ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers.
Pyongyang has yet to release any report on both launches.