North Korea fired about ten short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast on Thursday, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, in the latest show of force on a peninsula where tensions have been climbing for weeks. The missiles were launched at about 12:30pm local time from an area around Wonsan on North Korea's eastern coast and flew towards the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea, travelling roughly 250 kilometres according to South Korean reporting. Japan's defence ministry separately confirmed the launch of what it said could be a ballistic missile, which did not appear to have landed within Japan's exclusive economic zone.

The landmine dispute behind the launch

The launch comes as tensions along the inter-Korean border have risen sharply since two mine explosions in the Demilitarized Zone on 21 September wounded three South Korean soldiers. Seoul accused North Korea of planting mines south of the military demarcation line and demanded an apology, while Pyongyang denied responsibility and warned of retaliation if provoked. The launch also comes ahead of Pyongyang's end-of-month deadline to activate propaganda loudspeaker broadcasts along the border, another source of friction between the two sides.

Seoul's response

South Korea's presidential National Security Office held an emergency meeting after the launches and condemned them as a serious violation of UN Security Council resolutions, calling on Pyongyang to stop its missile tests. Seoul said it was increasing surveillance, maintaining readiness for further launches and sharing tracking information with the United States and Japan. The launch was the third North Korean missile launch this month, according to the corrected Reuters report.

With dialogue suspended, the missile barrage reads as a rejection of Seoul's recent overtures as much as a weapons test.

Sources: Reuters via BusinessWorld, Associated Press via Military.com.