North Korea Fires Multiple Ballistic Missiles, Extending Test Streak

SEOUL – North Korea launched several ballistic missiles toward waters off its eastern coast Monday, South Korea’s military reported, in the latest weapons display to deepen tensions amid a long-running diplomatic stalemate.

Jang Do-young, a spokesperson for South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the missiles included different types and were fired from an area near Pyongyang. The North Korean capital’s main airport has served as a frequent launch location in recent years.

One missile traveled more than 900 kilometers (559 miles) before splashing down in the sea, Jang said. He did not provide flight information for the other weapons, and the Joint Chiefs did not say how many missiles were detected.

Japan’s Defense Ministry separately reported detecting at least two missiles. Both landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone, according to the ministry, while the prime minister’s office said there were no immediate reports of damage.

The launches come as North Korea accelerates testing aimed at expanding its arsenal of nuclear-capable weapons. On Oct. 3, Pyongyang said it had tested a hypersonic intermediate-range missile designed to maneuver around missile defenses operated by South Korea and Japan.

The country has also carried out additional missile exercises and live-fire drills, while commissioning a new warship. Leader Kim Jong Un continues to showcase North Korea’s nuclear program even as he rejects offers from Washington and Seoul to restart diplomacy that has been stalled for years.

Monday’s activity followed South Korea’s flight test Friday of a domestically developed hypersonic weapon. Designed to travel at least five times the speed of sound and penetrate missile defenses, the system was described by President Lee Jae Myung as an important step toward strengthening the South’s conventional military capabilities. Lee’s office did not directly mention North Korea’s weapons program, but said the weapon, once fully developed, could give Seoul a surprise-strike capability against key targets in the “Korean Peninsula theater of operations.”

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Jang said the North Korean launches probably served two purposes: advancing the country’s missile technology and potentially responding to South Korea’s hypersonic test. He said it was too early to determine whether the latest activity included another test of North Korea’s hypersonic capabilities, as the launches remained under review.

South Korea’s presidential national security office urged Pyongyang to “immediately cease” its repeated ballistic missile launches. The office said the tests violate U.N. Security Council resolutions and “do not help manage the current situation on the Korean Peninsula.”

Relations have also deteriorated since three South Korean soldiers were hurt in land mine blasts last month near the heavily fortified border. South Korea’s military and the U.S.-led United Nations Command said the mines had been planted by North Korea. Pyongyang has denied responsibility and mocked Seoul’s calls for an apology.

Kim has largely ended diplomacy and cooperation with South Korea in recent years, labeling the neighboring country a permanent enemy. Nuclear negotiations with Washington have likewise remained frozen. Kim has rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s appeals to revive talks that collapsed in 2019, while insisting that Washington end what Pyongyang calls its “hostile” policy and abandon demands that North Korea denuclearize before negotiations can resume.

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AP writer Mari Yamaguchi contributed from Tokyo.