North Korea launches several missiles into the Sea of Japan

Tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang continue after the wounding of three South Korean soldiers following the explosion of a land mine in the Demilitarized Zone

North Korea has launched several ballistic missiles off its eastern coast, Seoul's military said, after weeks of escalating tensions following the explosion of a land mine along the heavily fortified border. Since the explosion that injured three South Korean soldiers in the Seoul-controlled Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), both countries have tested more advanced missile technologies.

The Seoul Declaration

“At around 09:20 (02:20 GMT) our military detected the launch of several ballistic missiles from the Pyongyang area towards the Sea of Japan,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said on Monday. “Our military has intensified surveillance and vigilance against possible further launches,” he added in his statement. Japan's Defense Ministry separately confirmed the launch of at least one suspected ballistic missile. The US Pacific Command said North Korea launched two ballistic missiles, but that they posed no immediate threat "to US personnel or territory, nor to our allies."

Some missiles traveled 900 kilometers

Some of the detected North Korean missiles traveled more than 900 kilometers, the United Nations Joint Command said, while Seoul and the United States, long-time allies, are now conducting an analysis of their exact specifications. South Korea's National Security Bureau called an emergency security meeting following the launch to assess the country's military readiness.

The mines in the DMZ and the tensions with Seoul

A joint Seoul-UN investigation last week concluded that North Korea had planted the landmines that exploded in the DMZ more than a year ago, a charge Pyongyang has adamantly denied. Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, called South Korea's demands for an apology "despicable", while rejecting an offer of medical equipment from Seoul. On October 3, Pyongyang tested a medium-range ballistic missile that Kim Yo Jong said employed unspecified artificial intelligence technology and was "capable of modifying its flight path at low altitude." Seoul announced a few days later that it had successfully tested a domestically produced hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV), a weapon carried high into the atmosphere by booster rockets or ballistic missiles before gliding towards its targets. The presidential Blue House said the HGV offered "a new deterrent capability capable of striking key targets in the Korean Peninsula operating area."

Kim Yo-jong: "Seoul shows respect and sincerity"

On Thursday, Kim Yo-jong said Seoul must show "utmost respect" if it hopes to mend ties with the North. “If (South Korea) truly wants to re-establish relations between the DPRK and South Korea, it should take into account the feelings of the other side in every word and action, and first demonstrate the utmost respect, consideration and sincerity,” he said Thursday, using his country's official acronym. The escalation of tensions comes as US President Donald Trump's recent overtures towards Pyongyang have raised fears that Washington's ally Seoul could be sidelined in potential nuclear talks with North Korea. In October, North Korea launched several short-range ballistic missiles a day after Trump hinted at the possibility of a meeting with Kim Jong-un this year. Seoul and Pyongyang remain technically in a state of war, as the Korean conflict ended in 1953 with a truce and not a peace treaty.