North Korea fires short-range ballistic missiles toward East Sea: JCS

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North Korea fires short-range ballistic missiles toward East Sea: JCS

Published: 12 Sep. 2024, 09:08 Updated: 12 Sep. 2024, 19:03

LIM JEONG-WON
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

A television screen shows a file image of North Korea's missile launch during a news broadcast at Seoul Station in Jung District, central Seoul, on Thursday. [AP/YONHAP]

North Korea fired several short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) into the East Sea on Thursday, marking its first ballistic missile launch since July 1 of this year and less than 24 hours after the second U.S. presidential debate.

The SRBMs were launched from near Pyongyang at around 7:10 a.m. on Thursday, according to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), with three to four projectiles detected.

“The military is maintaining full readiness and closely sharing information on North Korea’s ballistic missiles with U.S. and Japanese authorities while strengthening surveillance and vigilance in preparation for additional launches,” said the JCS.

The launch is the North’s first in 73 days, following its July 1 launch of a tactical ballistic missile equipped with what the regime claimed was a new super-large warhead. Pyongyang previously said it would carry out additional test launches but had not conducted any until now.

The SRBMs flew about 360 kilometers (223 miles) and landed in the East Sea, according to the JCS.

The range of the missiles puts not only major cities in the South such as Seoul and Daejeon within striking distance, but also cities such as Gyeryong, Gunsan and Cheongju, where major military facilities are located.

The Japanese Defense Ministry said Thursday’s salvo lasted about 4 minutes and that the missiles peaked at an altitude of about 100 kilometers.

Japanese authorities believe the missiles landed in the sea outside their country’s Exclusive Economic Zone.

The South Korean military believes that North Korea may have fired multiple super-large KN-25 SRBMs considering the flight distance, altitude and simultaneous launch of multiple projectiles.

Experts had initially anticipated that Pyongyang would stage weapons tests during the joint Seoul-Washington military exercises earlier this summer. However, severe flooding in Jagang Province in early August may have forced the North to delay the launches.

South Korea’s Unification Ministry criticized the North for carrying out missile launches while its northern regions are still recovering from the floods, saying that the latest test only exposes “the hypocrisy of the regime’s ‘people-first’ propaganda.”

The test may not only be intended as a response to the recent South Korea-U.S. joint Ssangyong exercise, but also as “a test for missiles intended for export to Russia,” said Lee Seong-joon, a spokesperson from the JCS, during a press briefing Thursday.

Noting that China and Russia are currently conducting joint naval and air drills around the East Sea and the Sea of Okhotsk, Hong Min, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, suggested that North Korea may be trying to “demonstrate its military capabilities during this time,” adding that “further launches could occur” during the ongoing drills.

Some experts believe the timing of the missile test may also have been an attempt by North Korea to influence U.S. political dynamics.

The North Korean leader was mentioned during the first U.S. presidential debate between Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic Party candidate, and Republican Party candidate and former President Donald Trump on Tuesday.

The vice president accused the former president of “admiring” dictators like Kim, while Trump claimed that the North Korean leader was “afraid” of him.

Harris claims dictators can 'manipulate' Trump, while Trump insists North Korea is 'afraid' of him

“[By showing military force] right after the U.S. debate, North Korea may be trying to create a more favorable political landscape for itself,” said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies. “We may see an increase in provocations in the coming weeks.”

Update, September 12: Added information about the trajectory of the missiles, the reaction from South Korea and speculation surrounding the timing of the launch.

BY LIM JEONG-WON, SEO JI-EUN [[email protected]]