North Korea fires ballistic missiles as US-South Korea hold military drills

Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff say approximately 10 ballistic missiles were fired by Pyongyang.Published On 14 Mar 2026North Korea has fired multiple ballistic missiles from its west coast as the United States and South Korean forces stage their annual military exercises, according to Japanese and South Korean defence forces.Japan’s Ministry of Defence said on Saturday that the missiles were fired at about 1:34pm local time (04:34 GMT) in a northeastern direction, according to a statement posted on X.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Iran war: What is happening on day 15 of US-Israel attacks?list 2 of 4US attacks military sites on Iran’s Kharg island, home to vast oil facilitylist 3 of 4Israel kills 12 medics in attack in southern Lebanon as war ravages nationlist 4 of 4US Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq attacked with missile that hits helipadend of listJapan estimates that the missiles reached a maximum altitude of 80 kilometres (50 miles) and flew approximately 340 kilometres before landing near the east coast of the Korean Peninsula, outside Tokyo’s exclusive economic zone.Early reports indicate that no damage has been reported by nearby aircraft or ships, the post said.South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff separately confirmed that Pyongyang had fired approximately 10 ballistic missiles towards the East Sea, which is also known as the Sea of Japan, according to Yonhap News Agency.The JCS said the incident marks the third time North Korea has fired ballistic missiles since the start of the year.South Korean, Japanese and US forces remain in a “heightened surveillance posture against additional launches,” the South Korean news agency said.Pyongyang often fires missiles and other projectiles to signal anger at its neighbours.The launches on Saturday come as the world is focused on the war ignited in the Middle East by the US-Israel attacks on Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes across the region.The North earlier this week protested the start of the 10-day Freedom Shield exercises, which involve thousands of troops from South Korea and the US and run until March 19.