North Korea Fires About 10 Ballistic Missiles During U.S.–South Korea Drills

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff say North Korea launched about 10 short-range ballistic missiles from the Sunan area near Pyongyang’s international airport into the sea off its east coast on Saturday, each flying roughly 350 kilometers. The volleys coincided with large-scale joint spring exercises by U.S. and South Korean forces and come as Washington is heavily engaged in a separate war with Iran, raising fears in Seoul about stretched U.S. missile-defense resources. Japan’s defense minister Shinjiro Koizumi said the missiles landed outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone and there were no immediate reports of damage to ships or aircraft. The launches follow local media speculation that some U.S. THAAD and Patriot interceptors may be redeployed from South Korea to the Middle East, which President Lee Jae Myung’s office refused to confirm while insisting allied defenses against the North remain intact. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, had days earlier condemned the drills and warned that any challenge to the North’s safety would bring “terrible consequences,” underscoring how Pyongyang is trying to exploit global instability to pressure Washington and Seoul. For the U.S., the episode highlights the risk of simultaneous crises in the Middle East and Northeast Asia testing American deterrence and missile-defense commitments.