North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles, South Korea says

The missiles were fired about 7:40 a.m on Monday from South Hwanghae, South Korea's JCS said


REUTERS March 14, 2023
North Korea fires two more missiles into its Pacific 'firing range'. PHOTO: REUTERS

North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast on Tuesday, South Korea's military said, the latest of several weapons tests as the South and the United States conduct their largest joint military drills in years.

The missiles were fired about 7:40 a.m. (2240 GMT on Monday) from South Hwanghae province, near the country's west coast, and flew about 620 kilometres, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The South Korean military was on high alert and maintaining a full readiness posture in close coordination with the United States, the JCS said in a statement.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Japan was collecting information on the missile, and that they have not confirmed any damage within the country related to the launch.

Japanese chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said the missiles have not been confirmed to have flown into Japan's territory or exclusive economic zones.

Also read: North Korea launches missiles from submarine as US-South Korean drills begin

"We see there is a possibility that North Korea will step up further provocative actions, including missile launches and nuclear tests," Matsuno said. "We will continue a close cooperation with the US and South Korea over North Korea's military moves, and gather and analyse information with surveillance."

US Indo-Pacific Command said the latest launches did not pose an immediate threat to US personnel or territory, or to its allies, but said the North's unlawful weapons programmes had a destabilising effect.

South Korea's military "strongly condemned" North Korea, calling the repeated missile launches a grave provocation threatening the region's peace and security, and a US State Department spokesperson criticised the launches as a violation of multiple United Nations Security Council Resolutions.

"The South Korea-US alliance will carry out our exercises and training as planned even if North Korea tries to hamper our Freedom Shield drills with provocations," a spokesperson for South Korea's defence ministry told a briefing.

The launch comes two days after North Korea test-fired what it called two strategic cruise missiles from a submarine, and less than a week after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered the military to intensify drills to deter and respond to a "real war" if necessary.

South Korean and American forces began 11 days of joint drills, dubbed "Freedom Shield 23," on Monday, which will be held on a scale not seen since 2017 to counter the North's growing threats. North Korea has long bristled at the allies' drills as a rehearsal for invasion.

On Sunday, North Korean state media KCNA reported the country has decided to take "important practical" war deterrence measures, saying, "war provocations of the US and South Korea are reaching the red-line."

US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Monday the US would not let "any steps North Korea takes deter us or constrain us from the actions that we feel are necessary to safeguard stability on the Korean Peninsula."

The United States will hold an informal meeting of United Nations Security Council members on Friday on human-rights abuses in North Korea.

North Korea's foreign ministry has denounced the planned meeting as "the most intensive expression" of US "hostile policy" against Pyongyang, and warned it will take "the toughest counteraction."

COMMENTS (1)

Ewiak Ryszard | 1 year ago | Reply As you can see the world is preparing for war. Moses had already written about it And ships from the direction of Kittim US Navy and will afflict Asshur Russia and will afflict Eber remaining enemies including Iran and China . Numbers 24 24a This will be a mutual slaughter. This time it will be a world war not only by name. Peace will be taken from the earth and the sword of great power will be used. Revelation 6 4 Jesus characterized it in this way a frightening things both and extraordinary related to unusual phenomena from sky powerful will be. For this reason there will be significant tremors along the length and breadth of the regions of strategic importance and famines and pestilences. Some ancient manuscripts contain the words and frosts . The Aramaic Peshitta and will be great frosts . Luke 21 11 We call this today nuclear winter . In Mark 13 8 there are also words of Jesus and disorders lack of public order . The Aramaic Peshitta and confusion on the state of public order . This extremely detailed sign fits only one war. It won t be Armageddon. All these are only the beginning of the labor pains. Matthew 24 8 New Catholic Bible And now before us is the return of the king of the north . In the Book of Daniel God announces At the appointed time the king of the north will return back and this means military actions. Russian garrisons will return to where they were previously stationed. And this applies not only to Ukraine. Not only the eurozone will break up but also the European Union and NATO. Many countries of the former Eastern block will return to a military alliance with Russia and come into the south this will be the beginning of the nuclear war but won t be as earlier and as later during earlier and later proxy wars then the dwellers of distant coastlands of Kittim the distant West US will come against him and he will break down mentally and will go back. Daniel 11 29 30a Accordingly God advises Go into the caves of the cliffs rocks dig holes and hide in the ground hide in the dust ground from the anger terror terrible presence of the Lord and from his great power the majesty glory splendor of his majesty Isaiah 2 10 Expanded Bible compare Psalm 119 120 Exodus 9 13-20 The far-sighted Swiss had already prepared for this scenario at the end of the 20th century. We believers will also need shelters.
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