North Korea launches SRBMs after South Korea-U.S.-Japan drills
Pyongyang launched multiple short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) into the East Sea following the Freedom Edge joint exercises. The launches also come amid a recent reshuffle of North Korea’s top military leadership.
A news report on North Korea’s launch of around 10 short-range ballistic missiles is shown on a television screen at Seoul Station in central Seoul on Aug. 20.YONHAP
North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) from the Wonsan area toward the East Sea on Saturday, marking its first provocation in 23 days.
The launch has been widely interpreted as a show of military capability in response to Freedom Edge, a regular multidomain exercise conducted by South Korea, the United States and Japan, following Pyongyang’s recent reshuffle of its top military leadership.
South Korean and U.S. military authorities detected multiple SRBMs launched from the Wonsan area at around 5:20 a.m. toward the northeastern East Sea, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
“The missiles flew approximately 250 kilometers [155 miles],” the JCS said. “South Korea and the United States are conducting a detailed analysis of their exact specifications.”
The missiles landed in waters near Al Island off Hwadae County, North Hamgyong Province, which the North Korean military uses as a missile target. Experts say Pyongyang likely fired missiles from the Hwasong-11 series, also known as the KN-23, and rounds from 600-millimeter (24-inch) multiple rocket launchers, known as the KN-25, in succession.
The U.S. Pacific Command said in a statement released shortly after the launches on Friday morning, local time, that it was “aware of the recent missile launches and [was] consulting closely with our allies and partners.”
“Based on current assessments, these events do not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to our allies,” the command said. “The United States remains committed to the defense of the U.S. homeland and our allies in the region.”
A screen capture of the U.S. Pacific Command's statement released on Sept.12SCREEN CAPTURE
The launches are widely seen as a response to Freedom Edge, a five-day trilateral exercise conducted by South Korea, the United States and Japan in international waters east and south of Jeju Island from Monday through Friday.
North Korean Defense Minister Kim Song-gi had threatened retaliation in a statement issued Monday, citing Freedom Edge and Orient Shield, a military exercise involving the United States, Japan and Australia.
“If the United States and its allies attempt to provoke a new military confrontation with us, we will also take strong and reflexive countermeasures from a position of strength,” Kim said.
Some observers also interpret the launch as a show of force directed at South Korea following the North’s recent reshuffle of its military leadership.
At the second meeting of the ninth Central Military Commission of the Workers’ Party on Aug. 30, North Korea reinstated Pak Jong-chon as vice chairman of the commission, effectively placing him in charge of the country’s military policy, and appointed Kim, then director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army, as defense minister.
The presidential Office of National Security convened an emergency security assessment meeting Saturday to evaluate the launch’s potential impact on national security.
North Korea conducts tests of a new multiple rocket launcher and other weapons on June 25, attended by its leader Kim Jong-un, in this photo provided by the Korean Central News Agency.YONHAP
“The meeting stressed the need to maintain a thorough readiness posture,” the Blue House said. “North Korea’s ballistic missile launch is a grave act that violates United Nations Security Council resolutions, and we urge it to cease such actions.”
Separately, North Korea disclosed through the state-run Korean Central News Agency on Saturday that UN Secretary General António Guterres had sent a congratulatory message to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un marking the 78th anniversary of the regime’s founding on Wednesday.
According to KCNA, Guterres congratulated Kim on the anniversary in the message sent Tuesday, saying that “national days remind us anew of the value of dialogue and solidarity in addressing global challenges.”
“The message appears to express Secretary General Guterres’ desire to improve relations between the United Nations and North Korea, which have remained severed since the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Yang Moo-jin, chair professor at the University of North Korean Studies.
“North Korea’s decision to publicize it appears intended to emphasize that the UN also supports its efforts to establish itself as a sovereign and normal state,” Yang added.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
