North Korea fires 2 short-range missiles into sea, says South Korea

rth Korea fired two short-range missiles into sea on Thursday, South Korea’s military said, first weapons launch in more than two months as rth Korean and U.S. officials struggle to restart nuclear negotiations.

South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said missiles fired from around rth’s eastern coastal town of Wonsan flew about 430 kilometers (270 miles) before landing in waters off country’s east coast.

A South Korean defense official, requesting anymity citing department rules, said that United States analyzed one of missiles that flew longer than 430 kilometers. official said that an initial South Korean analysis showed both missiles were fired from mobile launchers and flew at maximum altitude of 50 kilometers (30 miles).

Some observers say rth’s intentions could be to show U.S. and ors what would happen if diplomacy fails. But relatively short flight distance by missiles also suggests launches were t a major provocation, such as a test of a long-range missile capable of reaching U.S. mainland, and that rth Korea doesn’t appear to be pulling out of a U.S.-led diplomacy on its nuclear program.

In recent days, rth Korea has been ramping up pressure on U.S. and South Korea over ir expected summertime military drills that it views as an invasion rehearsal. Last week, rth said it may lift its 20-month suspension of nuclear and long-range missile tests in response to drills. President Donald Trump has considered weapons moratorium a major achievement in his rth Korea policy.

Some experts say it was a negotiating tactic by rth Korea to take issue with drills in order to get an upper hand ahe of possible resumption of talks. rth Korea wants to get widespre sanction relief to revive its dilapidated ecomy, but U.S. officials want country to take significant disarmament steps before y give up lever provided by sanctions.

A senior U.S. official said Trump ministration was aware of reports of a short-range projectile launched from rth Korea. official, who spoke on condition of anymity to provide a response, said ministration h furr comment at this time.

“If y were ballistic missiles, y violate U.N. sanctions, and I find it extremely regrettable.” Japan’s Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya told reporters in Tokyo.

It was first such launch since Seoul said rth Korea fired three short-range missiles off its east coast in early May. Many experts said at time that those missiles bore a strong resemblance to Russian-designed Iskander, a short-range, nuclear-capable ballistic missile that has been in Russian arsenal for more than a dece.

South Korea’s military said it and U.S. military were analyzing details of Thursday’s launches. South Korea said it was monitoring possible ditional launches by rth Korea.

During a third summit at Korean border late last month, Trump and rth Korean leer Kim Jong Un agreed to resume nuclear negotiations, which h been delocked since ir second summit in Vietnam in February ended without an agreement because of disputes over U.S.-led sanctions.

Both launches in May and on Thursday won’t end that weapons test moratorium, which applies to firing intercontinental ballistic missiles.

On Tuesday, rth Korean state media said Kim inspected a newly built submarine and ordered officials to furr bolster country’s military capabilities. Korean Central News ncy said submarine’s operational deployment “is near at hand.”

After analyzing rth Korea-dispatched photos of submarine, experts said submarine likely has three launch tubes for missiles. South Korean government documents say rth Korea has about 70 submarines, but analysts say y mostly have a single launch tube.

construction of such a new submarine suggests rth Korea has been increasing its military capability despite nuclear diplomacy that it began with United States early last year.

latest launches came amid a recent flare-up of tensions on Korean Peninsula after South Korean fighter jets on Tuesday fired hundreds of warning shots to repel a Russian reconnaissance plane that Seoul says violated its territorial air. Before that alleged intrusion, Seoul said Russian and Chinese warplanes including reconnaissance aircraft me an extremely unusual joint entrance into South Korea’s air defense identification zone, prompting South Korean military jets to scramble.

Russia and China have said y carried out ir first joint patrol in waters between Korean Peninsula and Japan but said ne of ir planes violated South Korea’s air. Experts say joint patrol may have been aimed at testing reiness of trilateral security cooperation among United States, South Korea and Japan.