N. Korea launches unidentified ballistic missile: Seoul

This handout photo taken on May 25, 2022 and provided by the South Korean Defence Ministry in Seoul shows a US Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) firing a missile from an undisclosed location on South Korea’s east coast during a live-fire exercise aimed to counter North Korea’s missile test. – North Korea fired a volley of missiles early on May 25, including a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile, just hours after US President Joe Biden left Asia after a trip overshadowed by Pyongyang’s sabre-rattling. (Photo by Handout / South Korean Defence Ministry / AFP)

North Korea launched at least one ballistic missile into waters off its east coast, South Korea’s military said Sunday, the latest in a recent series of weapons tests.

Pyongyang has doubled down on upgrading its weapons programme this year despite facing crippling economic sanctions.

“North Korea fired an unidentified ballistic missile(s) into the East Sea,” Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Sunday morning, referring to the Sea of Japan.

US and South Korean officials have warned for weeks that Pyongyang may conduct a seventh nuclear test.

Last month, it test-fired three missiles, including possibly its largest intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-17.

That launch came just days after US President Joe Biden left South Korea following a meeting with newly elected President Yoon Seok-youl.

Despite struggling with a recent Covid-19 outbreak, North Korea has resumed construction on a long-dormant nuclear reactor, new satellite imagery has indicated.

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© Agence France-Presse