SEOUL: South Korea’s military said Monday’s North Korean missile launches appeared to answer Seoul’s recent hypersonic weapon test, after detecting multiple ballistic missiles heading towards the East Sea.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) detected the launches from the Pyongyang area. At least one missile travelled more than 900 kilometres.
JCS spokesperson Jang Do-young said the launches could demonstrate progress under North Korea’s five-year defence development plan.
He described the activity as a possible response to South Korea’s successful test of a hypersonic glide vehicle on Thursday.
However, Jang declined to identify the latest weapons as hypersonic or intermediate-range missiles. Military analysts still needed to examine their specifications.
Read: Pentagon strongly condemns North Korea missile test
Japan separately detected two suspected ballistic missiles. Both reportedly landed outside its exclusive economic zone. Meanwhile, South Korea’s foreign ministry condemned the launches as violations of United Nations Security Council resolutions.
Seoul’s military increased surveillance for further launches while sharing information with the United States and Japan. The latest incident followed North Korea’s October 3 missile test, which Pyongyang described as training for troops operating its hypersonic strategic weapons system.
Tensions between the two Koreas have also intensified since a September 21 landmine explosion in the Demilitarized Zone. Three South Korean soldiers suffered injuries in that incident, including two with serious wounds.
Seoul accused North Korean troops of deliberately planting the mines after a joint investigation with the United Nations Command.
However, Pyongyang rejected the accusation, alleging that South Korea had fabricated the findings. North Korea had not publicly commented on Monday’s missile launches when the initial reports emerged.
