Kim Jong Un fired two short-range ballistic missiles at sea on Friday as Seoul wrapped up its annual military exercise.
What happened: South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff said its neighbor Pyongyang fired two missiles that flew toward North Korea’s eastern waters. CNN reported.
“Our military has increased surveillance and vigilance and maintains a fully prepared posture while working closely with the US,” the JCS added.
The launch comes ahead of the conclusion of South Korea’s annual 12-day “Hoguk” field exercises, which this year involved an unspecified number of U.S. troops. That was the latest in a series of weapons tests by Kim in the past few weeks. Recently also the North Korean military fired artillery shells into the waters off its coast to send a “serious warning” to South Korea.
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Meanwhile, the South Korean military confirmed on Tuesday that Seoul and the US Air Force plan to conduct their combat readiness exercise from Oct. 31 to Nov. 4 in South Korean airspace.
Why it matters: That United NationsThe chief of the nuclear regulator said there were indications that North Korea might be preparing for a nuclear test. “Everyone is holding their breath at this,” said the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Rafael Grossi said reported Reuters.
Grossi said a seventh nuclear test by North Korea was further “confirmation of a program moving full steam ahead in an incredibly worrying way.”
But experts say Kim must not rush his seventh nuclear test US midterm elections with hopes of Donald Trump’s return to top office.
Continue reading: Trump’s ‘love letters’ to Kim Jong Un reportedly reveal the North Korean leader ‘was willing to cooperate with the US’
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