North Korea fires about 10 ballistic missiles amid US–South Korea drills: What we know so far

Tensions in East Asia rose on Saturday after North Korea launched a projectile toward the sea off its east coast, with Japan and South Korea saying it may have been a ballistic missile. The launch comes as the US and South Korea continue joint military exercises in the region.

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Here’s what we know so far:

North Korea fires multiple missiles

South Korea’s military said North Korea fired about 10 ballistic missiles toward the sea off its east coast on Saturday. The launches were detected and tracked by South Korean and Japanese authorities.

Japan says missile fell into sea

Japan’s coast guard said the projectile appeared to have fallen into the sea. According to Japan’s public broadcaster NHK, defence ministry officials believe it landed outside Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).

Missile flew 340 km at altitude of 80 km

Japan’s defence ministry said the missile reached an altitude of around 80 km and travelled about 340 km before falling into the sea.

Japan issues emergency alert

Japan’s Prime Minister’s Office issued an emergency alert on X warning that North Korea had launched a suspected ballistic missile. The government activated emergency monitoring protocols and convened an emergency response team at the crisis management centre in the prime minister’s office.

No damage reported so far

Authorities in Japan and South Korea said there were no immediate reports of damage from the launch. The Japan Coast Guard also advised ships at sea to stay alert and follow further updates.

Launch comes amid US–South Korea military drills

The launch occurred days after the US and South Korea began large-scale joint military exercises aimed at testing readiness against threats from North Korea. Washington and Seoul say the drills are defensive in nature.

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Pyongyang regularly condemns such exercises

North Korea has repeatedly criticised joint military drills by the US and South Korea, calling them “dress rehearsals” for invasion and often responding with weapons tests.

Diplomatic efforts also underway

The development comes days after South Korea’s prime minister met US President Donald Trump in Washington to discuss possible ways to resume dialogue with North Korea, which has remained stalled since 2019.

(With inputs from Reuters and ANI)