North Korea fired a ballistic missile on Wednesday toward the sea off the Korean Peninsula’s east coast, South Korean and Japanese authorities said, days ahead of major joint military exercises by Seoul and Washington long denounced by Pyongyang.
The missile was launched from the Wonsan area on North Korea’s east coast at around 6 a.m. (2100 GMT Tuesday), South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, six days after North Korea fired another ballistic missile from the same area.
The launch comes ahead of South Korean and U.S. military drills, dubbed Ulchi Freedom Shield, scheduled for August 17 to 27, aimed at countering Pyongyang’s evolving nuclear and weapons capabilities.
Hong Min, a senior researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul, said the launch was likely part of North Korea’s existing weapons development schedule, but the timing could also have been selected to send a message ahead of the U.S.-South Korean exercises.
“Even if it was a test of a weapon under development, choosing when to conduct it requires a political decision,” Hong said.
South Korean authorities said North Korea also fired a ballistic missile from Wonsan on August 6, but Pyongyang did not report that launch in state media. Hong said that test may have failed to achieve its intended objective.
North Korea has conducted a series of tests this year, including short-range ballistic missiles, artillery rockets and other tactical weapons.
Wednesday’s launch was its 11th suspected ballistic missile test in 2026, according to South Korean assessments.
South Korean and Japanese defence authorities said the missile flew around 700 km (435 miles). The Joint Chiefs of Staff did not identify Wednesday’s weapon as a short-range ballistic missile, saying authorities were conducting a detailed analysis of its specifications.
The omission leaves open the question of what type of missile it was, analysts said. Ballistic missiles with ranges of 300 km to 1,000 km are generally classified as short-range.
Hong said the range, trajectory and launch site suggested it may have been a type of hypersonic missile, though a submarine-launched missile was also possible.
There was no immediate statement from Pyongyang on the launch.
