Seoul: North Korea launched suspected multiple short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Tuesday, South Korea's military said, in a provocation staged just days before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) detected the launch at about 9:30 a.m. from the Ganggye area in the North's Jagang Province. This marks the recalcitrant regime's second provocation this year, following the launch of a claimed hypersonic intermediate-range ballistic missile on January 6.
In a recent year-end party meeting, North Korea declared it would implement the "toughest" counteraction strategy toward the United States, citing growing military cooperation among South Korea, the U.S., and Japan as forming a "military bloc for aggression."
"In preparation against additional launches, our military has strengthened our monitoring and vigilance, while closely sharing information on the North Korean missile with the U.S. and Japanese sides and maintaining a full readiness posture," the JCS stated.