N. Korea fires unidentified short-range projectiles: JCS

The projectiles were fired at 2:59a.m. and 3:23 a.m. from Yonghung, South Hamgyong Province, into the East Sea,and both of them flew around 220 kilometers at an approximate altitude of 25km, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

The projectiles, which flew at atop speed of Mach 6.9, appear to be a new type of short-range ballisticmissiles, but more analysis is needed, the presidential office Cheong Wa Daesaid.

«We are monitoring thesituation in case of additional launches and maintaining a readiness posture,»the JCS said.

In Washington, a senior U.S.official said he is aware of the North's latest launches.

«We are aware of publicreports of additional missile launches from North Korea today,» theofficial told Yonhap News Agency. «We continue to monitor the situationand are consulting closely with our South Korean and Japanese allies.»

Friday's launches came just twodays after the North fired two projectiles that it claimed was from a newmultiple launch rocket system. South Korea and the U.S. said the projectileswere short-range ballistic missiles.

Last week, the North also fired twoshort-range missiles. South Korean authorities said the missiles appear to be anew type of ballistic missiles, codenamed KN-23, that bear similarities toRussia's Iskander ballistic missile.

After last week's launches, theNorth said it sent a «solemn» warning to South Korea over its plannedmilitary exercises with the U.S. and purchase of high-tech fighter jets fromthe ally.

«What North Korea fired today showed flightpatterns similar to those launched on Wednesday, and the South Korean and theU.S. intelligence authorities see them as short-range ballistic missiles, giventheir trajectories and flight speed,» a Seoul military officer said.

Russia's Iskander, in general,moves at a speed of around Mach 6 and 7, while the North's 300-mm multiplerocket launcher system shows a far slower speed of about Mach 4, the officersaid, adding that South Korea and the U.S. are looking into what North Koreaclaimed and the photos it released to exactly identify the type of weapons itlaunched this week.

In the run-up to the combinedexercise with the U.S., the South Korean military is set to ramp upsurveillance and vigilance in case of further moves by North Korea, accordingto military sources.

The allies plan to stage thecommand post exercise starting on Monday for about five days. They then arescheduled to hold joint sessions for about 10 days aimed at testing SouthKorea's operational capabilities for the envisioned transfer of the wartimeoperational control from Washington to Seoul, the sources said.

U.N. Security Council resolutionsban North Korea from launching ballistic missiles of any kind.

Reuters earlier quoted two U.S.officials as saying a new projectile launch had been detected on Friday (Seoultime).

The launch did not pose a threat toNorth America, one official was quoted as saying, adding it was unclear howmany projectiles had been launched.

At the White House, U.S. PresidentDonald Trump insisted he had no problem with the launches because there hadbeen no agreement with North Korea on short-range missiles.

Trump and North Korean leader KimJong-un had agreed during their inter-Korean border meeting on June 30 toresume working-level talks on denuclearizing the regime.

«I think it's very much undercontrol,» he told reporters. Asked if he can still continuedenuclearization talks with Kim, Trump said, «Oh, sure, because these areshort-range missiles.»

«We never discussed that. Wediscussed nuclear. What we talked about is nuclear,» he said.