Jan 27, 2022: North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles at sea, South Korea and Japan said on Thursday, as nuclear-armed Pyongyang stepped up its weapons tests in self-defense, claiming it has right to defend itself from a “hostile” United States.

Yonhap News Agency reports that South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) announced the launch in a text message sent to reporters – the sixth of this month.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the launch at around 8:00 a.m local time in and around the east coast town of Hamhung, Yonhap News Agency reported. The missile flew at an altitude of about 20 km to a distance of about 190 km. “Our military is closely monitoring the relevant movements in North Korea and maintaining a readiness position,” the JCS said in a statement sent to reporters.

According to Reuters, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kashida said the government was still collecting details about the launches, but that the test of any ballistic missile was “extremely regrettable” and a violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

Pyongyang has conducted an unprecedented number of missile tests this month, including cruise missiles, prohibited ballistic missiles and “hypersonic” weapons, signaling the resumption of “all temporarily suspended activities.” Nuclear and long-range missile tests are banned under UN resolutions.

The United States and South Korea are urging North Korea to return to nuclear disarmament talks, which have stalled since the end of a summit between Kim Jong Un and former US President Donald Trump in Hanoi in 2019.

Under Biden, who took over the presidency last year, the United States has restructured North Korea’s policy and insisted it is ready for talks anywhere and anytime.

Despite Pyongyang’s provocative behavior, Biden’s administration’s has been more subdued than what the previous administration did in 2017, when North Korea conducted its last nuclear test and launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). At the time, Trump and Kim traded insults, and Trump promised to respond with “fire and fury.”

Earlier this month, some sanctions on those linked to the North’s nuclear program were re-evaluated, but when the UN Security Council convened, Russia and China blocked further action.

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