N. Korea fires 1 short-range ballistic missile into East Sea: S. Korean military

SEOUL. KAZINFORM North Korea fired one short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) into the East Sea on Thursday, its first missile provocation in a little over a week, according to the South Korean military, YONHAP reported.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the launch from the Wonsan area in Kangwon Province at 10:48 a.m. It did not provide other details.

«While strengthening our monitoring and vigilance, our military is maintaining a full readiness posture in close cooperation with the United States,» the JCS said in a text message sent to reporters.

The launch came shortly after North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui warned the North will take «fiercer» military actions if the United States sticks to a move to strengthen its «extended deterrence» commitment to regional allies.

Extended deterrence refers to America's pledge to use a full range of its military capabilities, both nuclear and conventional, to defend its allies.

U.S. President Joe Biden reaffirmed that pledge during a trilateral summit with South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida on the margins of annual regional gatherings in Phnom Penh on Sunday.

The North previously fired a short-range ballistic missile into the East Sea on Nov. 9.

Photo: en.yna.co.kr