North Korea fires suspected ballistic missiles into sea, S Korea, Japan say

The launches are the second this month after Pyongyang says it tested hypersonic missiles three weeks ago.Published On 27 Jan 2026North Korea has launched suspected ballistic missiles into the sea, Seoul and Tokyo say, in what appears to be a weapons test before a major political congress in the country.The launches on Tuesday were the second this month after a volley on January 4 as South Korean President Lee Jae Myung kicked off a state visit to China.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4North Korea fires missiles towards sea as South Korean leader visits Chinalist 2 of 4N Korea’s Kim oversees hypersonic missile tests, cites geopolitical crisislist 3 of 4North Korea’s Kim Jong Un fires vice premier, publicly rebukes officialslist 4 of 4North Korea’s Kim Yo Jong says no chance of improved ties with the Southend of listJapan’s Prime Minister’s Office and Ministry of Defence said Pyongyang fired what appeared to be two ballistic missiles towards the Japan" class="entity-link entity-location" data-entity-id="19667" data-entity-type="location">Sea of Japan. The country’s Coast Guard, citing the Defence Ministry, said both were believed to have splashed down.The Japanese news agency Jiji Press reported the projectiles had landed outside the country’s exclusive economic zone, quoting Defence Ministry sources.South Korea’s Ministry of National Defence also said it had detected the launch of at least one unidentified projectile that flew off North Korea’s east coast.Pentagon official visits SeoulTuesday’s launch came a day after a high-level visit to Seoul by the Pentagon’s number three official, Defence Undersecretary for Policy Elbridge Colby, and weeks after the earlier launches, which Pyongyang said involved hypersonic missiles that had successfully hit their targets 1,000km (621 miles) away.North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, who observed the January 4 tests, said they underscored the need to bolster his country’s nuclear deterrent, according to state media.Pyongyang recently threatened retaliation over what it called surveillance drone flights by Seoul across their border in January and September.