THE North has fired about 10 ballistic missiles towards the eastern sea, South Korea’s military said, staging its own show of force as the rival South conducts a joint military exercise with the United States.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missiles were fired from an area near the North Korean capital of Pyongyang, but didn’t immediately say how far they flew.
Japan’s Defence Ministry said the weapons landed in waters outside the country’s exclusive economic zone.
The South’s Joint Chiefs said the military has stepped up surveillance and is maintaining readiness against possible additional launches while closely sharing information with the United States and Japan.
The launches came as the United States and South Korean militaries conduct their annual springtime exercises involving thousands of troops while the Trump administration also carries out attacks on Iran.
The Middle East conflict has raised concerns about potential security lapses in South Korea, as local media – citing security camera footage and other images – have speculated that the US is relocating some missile defence assets stationed in the country to support operations against Iran.
When asked whether US Forces Korea was moving interceptor missiles from its Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) system in Seongju to the Middle East, President Lee Jae-myung’s office said it could not confirm details about US military operations.
The office said the potential relocation of US military assets would not affect the allies’ defence posture against nuclear-armed North Korea, while also citing the South’s conventional military strength.
Earlier, it gave a similar response to reports about the possible relocation of Patriot missile defence systems from South Korea.
North Korea has long described the allies’ drills as invasion rehearsals and often uses them as a pretext to dial up its own military demonstrations or weapons testing.
The North in previous years has conducted numerous salvo launches of missiles or artillery while describing them as simulations of nuclear attacks against targets in South Korea.
The launches came days after the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un criticised Washington and Seoul for proceeding with their drills at a perilous moment for global security, and warned that any challenge to the North’s safety would bring “terrible consequences”.
Without directly referring to the Iran conflict, Kim Yo-jong said on Tuesday that the US-South Korea drills undermine regional stability at a time when the global security structure is “collapsing rapidly and wars break out in different parts of the world due to the reckless acts of outrageous international rogues”.
North Korea’s Foreign Ministry has released separate statements denouncing the joint US-Israeli attacks on Iran and expressing support for Teheran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
The 11-day Freedom Shield exercise, which runs through March 19, is one of two annual command post exercises conducted by the militaries of the United States and South Korea.
The largely computer-simulated drills are designed to test the allies’ joint operational capabilities, while incorporating evolving war scenarios and security challenges.
Freedom Shield will be accompanied by a field training programme called Warrior Shield.
North Korea has repeatedly rejected Washington and Seoul’s calls to resume diplomacy aimed at winding down its nuclear programme.
Talks derailed in 2019 following the collapse of Jong-un’s second summit with US President Donald Trump.
Jong-un has made Russia the priority of his foreign policy, sending thousands of troops and large amounts of military equipment to support Moscow’s war in Ukraine, possibly in exchange for aid and military technology. — AP
