The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Monday fired off three ballistic missiles into eastern waters ahead of the country's National Day, South Korea's defense ministry said.
A defense ministry official told Xinhua that the missiles were launched into the East Sea at about 12:14 p.m. local time from its western areas near Hwangju county in North Hwanghae province.
What types of missiles were fired and how far they traveled are still unknown. The South Korean military is analyzing the details.
Seoul's military authorities had already detected preparations for Pyongyang's ballistic missile launches, according to the Yonhap news agency report.
Concerns emerged about possible DPRK provocations ahead of the 68th anniversary on Friday of the founding of the state. The defense ministry official said over the phone that the military has been closely monitoring DPRK troops.
The missile launches came less than two weeks after Pyongyang test-fired a ballistic missile from a submarine off its east coastal town of Sinpo, where a submarine base is known to be located, on Aug. 24.
The submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) flew some 500 km eastward, falling inside Japan's air defense identification zone for the first time.
The SLBM test was conducted in an apparent show of force toward the annual U.S.-South Korea military drills, codenamed Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG), which had run from Aug. 22 to Sept. 2.
The DPRK denounced the computer-simulated exercises as a dress rehearsal for northward invasion.
Tensions are also running high in the region and on the Korean Peninsula as Seoul and Washington agreed on July 8 to deploy a U.S. missile shield in South Korean soil by the end of next year.
The two allies claimed that one Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery, presumed to be installed in southeastern South Korea, could protect against what they claimed was the DPRK's nuclear and missile threats.
However, China and Russia have strongly opposed the deployment.
