Seoul: North Korea fires “unidentified projectiles” to sea

North Korea on Saturday fired unidentified projectiles toward the Sea of Japan, South Korea’s defense ministry said, as a US-South Korea joint military exercise is under way.

The “unidentified projectiles”, fired at 06:49 a.m. (21:49 GMT Friday), flew some 250 kilometers (155 miles) the ministry said.

US and South Korean intelligence authorities were analyzing their trajectories and other data to identify what the projectiles were.

The North’s move was immediately reported to President Moon Jae-in.

“The military is keeping a tight surveillance over the North to cope with further provocations”, the ministry added.

The North tends to test-fire ballistic missiles or other projectiles -- including those from long-range multiple rocket launchers -- in response to US-South Korea joint military exercises.

Tens of thousands of South Korean and US troops are taking part in the “Ulchi Freedom Guardian” joint military drills, a largely computer-simulated exercise that runs for two weeks in the South.

US says North Korea fired three ‘short-range’ ballistic missiles

The US military said that North Korea fired three short-range ballistic missiles on Saturday, with two of them failing in flight and the third blowing up ‘almost immediately.’

A spokesman for US Pacific Command said none of the missiles, which it said were launched near Kittaeryong, had posed a threat to either North America or the US Pacific territory of Guam.

‘The first and third missiles... failed in flight. The second missile launch... appears to have blown up almost immediately,’ said the spokesman, Commander Dave Benham, adding that the launches happened over a span of 30 minutes.