This file photo, taken Oct. 9, 2022, shows a news report on a North Korean missile provocation being aired on a TV screen at Seoul Station in Seoul. (Yonhap)
SEOUL – North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Friday, the South Korean military said as Seoul's major military exercise drew to a close.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the launches from the Tongchon area in Kangwon province between 11:59 a.m. and 12:18 p.m. and that the missiles flew 230 km. at apogees of about 24 km. at top speeds of around Mach 5.
The latest launches came as the South is set to conclude its Hoguk exercise later in the day.
Seoul and Washington DC are also preparing to stage major combined air drills, called Vigilant Storm, next week.
"The North's ballistic missile launches this time are acts of significant provocation that undermine peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula but also in the international community," the JCS said in a press release sent to reporters.
"While tracking and monitoring related movements in close cooperation with the United States in preparation against additional North Korean provocations, our military will maintain a firm readiness posture," it added.
In a statement, the US Indo-Pacific Command highlighted Washington's "ironclad" security commitment to Seoul and Tokyo.
"While we have assessed that this event does not pose an immediate threat to US personnel or territory, or to our allies, the missile launches highlight the destabilizing impact of the DPRK's unlawful WMD and ballistic missile programs," the command said.
DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. WMD means weapons of mass destruction.
The North last fired a short-range ballistic missile on October 14. (Yonhap)
