North Korea has launched multiple missiles towards waters off its east coast on Wednesday, South Korea’s military said.
Seoul said it had detected the launches originating from Sondok, a coastal area in eastern North Korea.
The latest launch comes against the backdrop of escalating tensions along the Korean Peninsula, following a landmine explosion near the heavily fortified border between North and South Korea.
Pyongyang has stepped up its weapons development activities in recent months. On Tuesday, North Korean state media reported a test involving a cruise missile fitted with what it described as a strategic dispersal warhead.
North Korea tested a strategic cruise missile mounted with a dispersal warhead on 2 Nov and assessed the flight characteristics for a vertical strike, state news agency KCNA reported.
This is North Korea’s sixth missile test in the months of October and November this year.
The latest incident also follows a series of missile launches on 29 October, when North Korea fired around a dozen short-range ballistic missiles during an event attended by leader Kim Jong Un at an exhibition showcasing drone technology.
Wednesday’s launch came hours after Kim Yo Jong, the North Korean leader’s influential sister, rejected the prospect of talks with Washington. She said Pyongyang would not consider dialogue unless the United States dropped what she described as its hostile policy towards North Korea.
Her remarks followed renewed denials by her that North Korea was responsible for the hacking of cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
North Korean state media also reported that Mr Kim had recently visited a naval shipyard where a destroyer is under construction. During the visit, he emphasised the need to strengthen the country’s naval capabilities.
Pyongyang has conducted several weapons tests this year, including launches involving hypersonic missiles and a missile that travelled more than 900km.
The growing frequency of these tests could indicate that North Korea is preparing to move towards large-scale missile production, potentially supplying weapons to Russia, according to Lee Choon-geun, a missile specialist and board member of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST).
“Before mass production and deployment, you typically need many tests,” Mr Lee told Reuters.
“Or they may be looking to export missiles in bulk to Russia, in which case they would need to run a lot of tests before shipping.”
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