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SEOUL: North Korea fired two ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast late on Monday, ahead of Korean War anniversary celebrations and hours after a US nuclear-powered submarine arrived at a naval base in the South.
South Korea’s defence ministry described the two projectiles as ballistic missiles that flew about 400 kilometers (248 miles) before falling into the sea.
Japan’s defence ministry also reported the launch of what it said were two ballistic missiles by North Korea, both of which fell outside its exclusive economic zone.
The launches were the latest in a series of weapons tests in recent weeks by Pyongyang, and come as Seoul and Washington ramp up defence cooperation in the face of soaring tensions with the North.
Last week South Korea hosted a visit by a US nuclear-capable submarine, the first deployment there by such a nuclear-armed American vessel in decades.
And in a move that likely further provoked the North, a second US submarine, the nuclear-powered USS Annapolis, arrived at a South Korean naval base around the time of the missile launches.
The launches come days after leader Kim Jong Un personally oversaw the latest firing of the country’s newest intercontinental ballistic missile, the solid-fuel Hwasong-18.
In efforts to bolster deterrence, Seoul and Washington have staged joint military exercises with advanced stealth jets and US strategic assets.
The White House took issue with Pyongyang’s latest action, with Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre saying “we certainly condemn the DPRK’s ballistic missile launches.”
The missile tests “pose a threat to the DPRK’s neighbors and the international community,” Jean-Pierre said, adding: “Our commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea and Japan remains ironclad.”
The latest launches come ahead of celebrations in North Korea this week marking the 70th anniversary of the end of fighting in the Korean War.
A Chinese delegation led by Politburo member Li Hongzhong will travel to the North for the event, in the first known visit by a foreign delegation since the start of the pandemic.
An armistice agreement ending Korean War hostilities was signed on July 27, 1953 but the two Koreas remain technically at war because the 1950-53 conflict ended in an armistice and not a peace treaty.
Tensions on the Korean peninsula also have ratcheted up recently due to the disappearance of a US soldier, Travis King, who was on a tour of the demilitarized zone last week when he ran across the border into North Korea.
The UN Command, a US-led multinational force that oversees the Korean War truce, said it has begun discussions with Pyongyang over the missing American serviceman.
