North Korea fired two short-range missiles early on Thursday from its eastern coast, South Korea’s military said, the first missile test since leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump agreed to revive stalled denuclearisation talks.
The missiles launched from near the eastern coastal city of Wonsan flew about 430 km (267 miles) and reached an altitude of 50 km (30 miles) before falling into the East Sea, an official at South Korea’s defence ministry told Reuters.
Japan’s defence ministry said the missiles did not reach Japan’s exclusive economic zone and had no immediate impact on national security.
The firing of ballistic missiles casts new doubts on efforts to restart denuclearisation talks after Trump and Kim met at the demilitarised zone (DMZ) at the end of June.
The White House, Pentagon and US State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
A US official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said according to initial information at least one short-range projectile was fired from North Korea. The official added that further analysis is underway.
Trump’s national security adviser John Bolton, who has taken a hardline towards North Korea, made no mention of the launches in a tweet on Thursday after a visit to South Korea. He said he had “productive meetings” with Seoul officials on regional security and building a stronger alliance.
After Trump and Kim met in the DMZ, the United States and North Korea vowed to soon hold a new round of working-level talks, but Pyongyang has since sharply criticised upcoming joint military drills by US and South Korean troops.
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