North Korea fires three ballistic missiles, flew up to 600 km: South Korea

The missiles were launched towards east from an area in the North's western region called Hwangju from 5:45 a.m. local time (2045 GMT Monday) to 6:40 a.m., the South's military said.

"The ballistic missiles flight went from 500 kilometers to 600 kilometers, which is a distance far enough to strike all of South Korea including Busan," the South's military said in a statement.

Busan is a South Korean port city in the south.

North Korea has test-fired a series of ballistic missiles in recent months including an intermediate-range missile in June and a submarine-launched missile this month.

Tuesday's launch came days after South Korea and the United States announced a final decision this month to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) anti-missile system in the South to counter threats from the North.

North Korea's military has threatened to retaliate against the deployment of the system with a "physical response" once its location and time of installation were decided.

China has also sharply criticized the decision as a move that will destabilize the security balance in the region.

Kazinform refers to Trend.az