North Korea launched a ballistic missile into the sea on Wednesday, according to Yonhap news agency.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed the launch but declined to provide further information, stating that an investigation is underway.
The office of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida verified on X that North Korea had launched a probable ballistic missile.
“The suspected ballistic missile from North Korea is not expected to reach Japan,” it stated of the projectile launched into the East Sea, often known as the Sea of Japan.
This launch occurred amid rising cross-border tensions, as the reclusive communist state has begun releasing garbage-carrying balloons into South Korea.
North Korea’s previous missile launch was on May 30, when Seoul accused Pyongyang of unleashing a volley of approximately ten short-range ballistic missiles.
A day later, North Korean official media published photographs of leader Kim Jong Un supervising tests of a multiple rocket launcher system.
Analysts speculate that the nuclear-armed North may be testing and scaling up manufacture of artillery and cruise missiles before shipping them to Russia for use in Ukraine.
In a report released last month, the Pentagon confirmed this behavior.
North Korea released more trash-filled balloons southward this week, Seoul’s military said Tuesday, the latest in a string of border barrages that has spurred a tit-for-tat propaganda blitz.
Pyongyang has already dispatched over a thousand balloons carrying rubbish in retribution for activists floating messages criticizing Kim’s rule north.
In retaliation, Seoul has canceled a military agreement aimed at lowering tensions and resumed some propaganda broadcasts from border loudspeakers.
Kim Yo Jong, Kim Jong Un’s sister and top official spokeswoman, warned last month that Seoul would “undoubtedly witness the new counteraction of the DPRK” if the leaflet drops and loudspeaker broadcasts continued.