5-11-2024 (SEOUL) North Korea has conducted a fresh series of short-range ballistic missile launches into the sea off its eastern coast, marking another provocative display of military might on the eve of the US presidential election.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff reported that multiple missiles were fired at approximately 7:30 am local time on Tuesday from the Sariwon region in North Hwanghae Province. The military command confirmed it was working closely with American and Japanese counterparts while maintaining enhanced surveillance measures.
Japanese authorities also detected the launches, with the coast guard confirming that the projectiles had already fallen. Japanese broadcaster NHK reported that the missiles appeared to have landed in waters outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
This latest show of force follows North Korea’s recent test of its new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-19, and comes at a politically sensitive time as American voters prepare to head to the polls.
In a statement published by state media KCNA, Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, justified the launches as a response to recent trilateral military exercises conducted by the United States, Japan, and South Korea. She characterised these drills as threatening and used them to defend North Korea’s ongoing nuclear development programme.
South Korean Defence Minister Kim Yong-hyun had previously anticipated such provocations, suggesting that North Korea would likely attempt to “exaggerate their existence” around the US presidential election through demonstrations of military capability, potentially including intercontinental missile tests or nuclear demonstrations.