South Korea: North fires cruise missiles in provocative tests

In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attends a meeting held on Jan. 23 and 24, 2024 in North Korea. Independent journalists were not given access to cover the event depicted in this image distributed by the North Korean government. The content of this image is as provided and cannot be independently verified. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s military said Sunday that North Korea fired several cruise missiles from waters off an eastern military port, in the country’s latest weapons demonstration in the face of deepening tensions with the United States, South Korea and Japan.

The South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff didn’t immediately say how many missiles were fired or how far they flew. It wasn’t immediately clear how the launches were conducted, although the North has previously tested cruise missiles from sea assets.

The launches were the North Korea’s third-known launch event of 2024, following a previous round of cruise missile tests on Jan. 24 and a Jan. 14 test-firing of the country’s first solid-fuel intermediate range ballistic missile.

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Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have increased in recent months as North Korean leader Kim Jong Un continues to accelerate his weapons development and issue provocative threats of nuclear conflict with the U.S. and its Asian allies.

The U.S., South Korea and Japan in response have been expanding their combined military exercises, which Kim portrays as invasion rehearsals, and sharpening their deterrence strategies built around nuclear-capable U.S. assets.