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North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea at dawn on the 9th.
The late-night provocation was carried out one day before the founding day of the Labor Party.
Reporter Jeong Ban-seok reports.
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North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea from 1:48 am to 1:58 a.m. in Gangwon Province today, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff is precisely analyzing flight distance, altitude, and speed.
The Japanese Ministry of Defense estimated that the second missile had a flight range of 350 km and an altitude of 100 km, Reuters reported.
The Ministry of Defense also said that both missiles fell outside Japan's exclusive economic zone and that the type of missile launched "will be investigated, including the possibility of a SLBM."
The North Korean provocation took place a day before the 77th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea.
Starting on the 25th of last month, one day before the ROK-U.S. joint exercise, North Korea conducted seven missile provocations in a fortnight.
It is the first time this year that the missile was launched in the late night time zone, and it is analyzed that it is trying to show off its customized striking ability by changing the launch time and location.
In particular, it is interpreted as responding to the South Korea-U.S. joint exercises that mobilized the US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan from the end of last month.
Earlier, North Korea denounced the Reagan's re-entry into the East Sea as "military bravado" and claimed that the missile launch was "a measure of self-defense."
The US State Department condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launch as a threat to the international community and repeatedly urged the return of dialogue.