South Korea, US Reacts To North Korea Tests, Fires Eight Ballistic Missiles

South Korea and the United States launched eight ballistic missiles on Monday, June 6 in response to a volley of ballistic missiles fired by North Korea the previous day.

The launches come a day after North Korea sent eight short-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast, in what observers described as the country’s greatest single test yet, according to BBC News.

In a statement, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the allies launched the ground-to-ground Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missile at targets in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, at 4:45 am local time (19:45 GMT on Sunday) for about 10 minutes.

The action was a demonstration of “the capability and readiness to launch immediate precision strikes on the origins of provocations and their command and support forces”, the JCS said.

“Our military strongly condemns the North’s series of ballistic missile provocations and seriously urges it to immediately stop acts that raise military tensions on the peninsula and add to security concerns,” it added.

The South Korean Defense Ministry verified the firing of eight Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS).

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, who took office last month, has promised to be harsher on North Korea, which has advanced its missile and nuclear programs and agreed with US President Joe Biden to boost joint military drills and their combined deterrence posture at a May summit in Seoul.

On Saturday, the two allies completed three days of naval training in international waters off the coast of Okinawa, Japan. For the first time since November 2017, the exercises included a US aircraft carrier.

Despite its rhetoric of negotiation, North Korea has criticized previous joint drills as an illustration of Washington’s persistent “hostile actions” toward Pyongyang.

This year, it has launched a flurry of missiles, ranging from hypersonic weaponry to the first test-firing of its largest intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) in five years.

On May 25, hours after Biden had returned from a six-day visit to Asia, it tested another probable ICBM. In response, South Korea and the United States fired two missiles to display their “overwhelming force” in the face of any North Korean strikes.

Meanwhile, officials in Washington and Seoul have warned that North Korea appears to be preparing to conduct nuclear testing for the first time since 2017.

Last week, the United States called for more UN sanctions against North Korea in response to its record ballistic missile launches, but China and Russia vetoed the proposal, publicly dividing the UN Security Council on North Korea for the first time since it began punishing the country in 2006 when it conducted its first nuclear test.