North Korea Fires 3 Ballistic Missiles

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North Korea has launched three ballistic missiles off its east coast on Wednesday local time, according to South Korea’s military, marking the first weapons fire in about two weeks and the 17th round this year.

According to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, the three ballistic missiles were launched in the space of less than an hour between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. from the Sunan area of Pyongyang, the North Korean capital.

Japan’s coast guard also reported at least two launches. Japanese broadcaster NHK said the missiles appeared to have fallen outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.

The launches came hours after U.S. President Joe Biden left Asia after a trip where he visited Seoul and agreed to boost measures to deter North Korea from advancing its nuclear and missile capabilities and intensifying its weapons tests. The measures include plans to increase and expand combined military exercises with South Korea, as well as deploy more U.S. strategic assets if necessary.

The two countries also offered to send COVID-19 vaccines to North Korea.

After traveling to South Korea, Biden went on to Japan, where he and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio agreed to work closely to address security challenges, which include North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic programs, as well as China’s “increasingly coercive” behavior in the Asia-Pacific region.

Separately, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol on Wednesday called a National Security Council meeting to discuss the North’s launches, his office said.

Just hours before Pyongyang’s missile launches, U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters in Washington that North Korea may be about to conduct a major weapons test.

“Our concern for another potential provocation, be it an [intercontinental ballistic missile] launch, be a potential seventh nuclear weapons test, our concern has not abated in any way,” he said.

North Korea’s last missile tests were on May 12, hours after the country reported its first COVID-19 cases. This year, the country appeared to have ramped up its weapons tests, including test-firing intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICMBs) at full range in March, marking the first ICBM test since 2017.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.