North Korea has fired two more ballistic missiles towards the sea, South Korea’s military said. The launch on Monday (local time) comes two days after North Korea launched its first ballistic missile of 2023 towards the Sea of Japan.
Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, warned Monday that the Pacific Ocean will more often serve as a “firing range” if North Korea believes the country’s security is in danger. Tensions in the region are further heightened by that remark.
On Friday, North Korea already threatened an “unprecedentedly harsh response”. Then it was announced that South Korea and the United States will hold new military exercises next week. These are intended to better respond to the growing nuclear threat from North Korea.
The US and South Korea agreed last year to hold such exercises annually. That will now happen for the first time. North Korea sees the military exercises as “preparation for war”.
Last year, North Korea fired a record number of missiles as a threat. According to the South Korean news agency Yonhap in 2022 there were more than seventy pieces.
