By Hyonhee Shin
SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles from its east coast on Tuesday, South Korea’s military said, marking Pyongyang’s latest show of force just days before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s return to office.
The missiles traveled about 250 km (155 miles) after taking off at around 09:30 (0030 GMT) from Kanggye, Jagang province, near the border with China, Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
“We strongly condemn the launch as a clear provocation that seriously threatens the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula,” the JCS said, warning the North not to “misjudge” the situation and vowing to “respond overwhelmingly” to any further provocations.
Acting South Korean President Choi Sang-mok also condemned the launch as a violation of UN Security Council resolutions and said Seoul would respond strongly to North Korea’s provocations.
The launch came about a week after the North fired what it claimed was a new hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile, its first missile test since November 5.
The latest missile launch also occurred during a visit to Seoul by Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and Iwaya condemned North Korea’s nuclear and missile development on Monday and pledged to strengthen security ties after talks in Seoul.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, during a visit to Seoul last week, also called for further strengthening of bilateral and trilateral cooperation involving Tokyo to better counter Pyongyang’s growing military threats.
Tuesday’s launch came days before the inauguration of Trump, who held unprecedented summit meetings with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during his first term and praised their personal relationship.
South Korean lawmakers, after being briefed by the National Intelligence Service, said on Monday that Pyongyang’s recent weapons tests were partly aimed at “demonstrating its means of deterring the US and getting Trump’s attention” after vowing the “strongest anti-US counter-action” in the key moment was the year-end policy meeting last month.
