DPRK fires 2 unidentified projectiles into East Sea: S.Korea

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) fired two unidentified projectiles into the eastern waters from its western region on Tuesday, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).

This early August 10, 2019 picture released from North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on August 11, 2019, shows the test-fire of a new weapon at an undisclosed location in North Korea. [File Photo: KCNA via VCG]

The projectiles were launched eastward at 6:53 a.m. and 7:12 a.m. local time each from the DPRK's west inland area of Kaechon in South Pyongan province, the JCS said in a statement.

They flew as long as about 330 km into the East Sea. Further details were under precision analysis by the intelligence authorities of South Korea and the United States.

The JCS said the South Korean military was monitoring relevant situations in preparation for further launches while maintaining a readiness posture.

It noted that the DPRK's acts escalating tensions would be of no help for efforts to defuse tensions on the Korean Peninsula, urging Pyongyang to stop such acts.

An emergency videoconference of the presidential National Security Council (NSC) standing committee was chaired by Chung Eui-yong, top national security adviser for South Korean President Moon Jae-in, Blue House spokesperson Ko Min-jung said.

During the videoconference, the NSC standing committee expressed strong concerns about the DPRK's continued launch of short-range projectiles since May while reviewing overall security situations on the Korean Peninsula.

Tuesday's test-firings came after Pyongyang launched what it called "super-large" multiple rocket launchers on Aug. 24 off the east coast. The DPRK test-launched projectiles 10 times in total this year.

On Monday night, the DPRK proposed to the United States resuming denuclearization negotiations later this month.

Choe Son Hui, the DPRK's first vice foreign minister, said in a statement that her country was willing to sit with the U. S. side at an agreed-upon time and place in late September to comprehensively discuss issues the two sides had taken up, according to the Korean Central News Agency.

Top DPRK leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump held their second summit meeting in late February at the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi, ending up with no agreement.

Kim and Trump had an impromptu meeting in late June at the inter-Korean border village of Panmunjom, agreeing to resume working-level dialogue for the peninsula's denuclearization.