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<\/a><\/p>\nPublished On 12 Aug 202612 Aug 2026<\/p>\n
North Korea has launched a ballistic missile towards the Sea of Japan, according to Seoul and Tokyo, marking the second such test from Pyongyang in less than a week.<\/p>\n
The launch on Wednesday came as South Korea and the United States announced plans to hold their annual Ulchi Freedom Shield military drills starting on August 17.<\/p>\n
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\u201cOur military detected at around 6:00 am [21:00 GMT Tuesday] a ballistic missile launched by North Korea from the Wonsan area towards the East Sea,\u201d South Korea\u2019s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a message to reporters, referring to a body of water also known as the Sea of Japan.<\/p>\n
South Korea\u2019s military said the missile flew more than 700km (435 miles).<\/p>\n
It said it has boosted its surveillance posture and that it was closely exchanging information on the launch with Washington and Tokyo.<\/p>\n
Japan\u2019s Defence Ministry said on social media that the suspected ballistic missile had \u201calready fallen\u201d, without providing further details.<\/p>\n
\u201cNorth Korea has never simply let a South Korea-US joint military exercise pass without a response,\u201d Lim Eul-chul, a North Korea expert at Kyungnam University, told the AFP news agency.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a message that Pyongyang is closely watching the upcoming drills and could stage a provocation if it deems one necessary.\u201d<\/p>\n
US-South Korea drills<\/p>\n
The Ulchi Freedom Shield training is to start on Monday and run for 11 days. Its scale will be similar to previous years, with 18,000 South Korean soldiers taking part, according to South Korea\u2019s military.<\/p>\n
North Korea has in previous years denounced the exercises<\/a> as a rehearsal for invasion, and responded to the drills with weapons tests<\/a> and harsh rhetoric. Seoul and Washington, however, have repeatedly said their training is defensive in nature.<\/p>\n On August 6, South Korea, the US and Japan detected the launch of a short-range ballistic missile from North Korea in what was Pyongyang\u2019s first ballistic weapons testing activity since late June.<\/p>\n North Korea did not confirm the reported launch.<\/p>\n Pyongyang has ratcheted up its criticism of Tokyo\u2019s defence policy, issuing statements at least seven times since July.<\/p>\n On Tuesday, North Korean state media condemned Japan\u2019s latest defence white paper as a \u201cre-invasion-minded\u201d document, saying it \u201cgroundlessly described\u201d Pyongyang as \u2060the greatest strategic challenge to \u201cjustify its reckless arms buildup\u201d.<\/p>\n North Korea has also been accused of playing a more active role in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.<\/p>\n