North Korea has fired what appear to be two short-range missiles, the South's military says, less than a week after its leader Kim Jong-un oversaw the test-firing of multiple rockets and a missile.
The launches came as US special envoy for North Korea Stephen Biegun was in Seoul, the South Korean capital, for talks with Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha and his counterpart, nuclear envoy Lee Do-hoon.
The two missiles were fired on Thursday afternoon from the northwest area of Kusong, in an easterly direction, the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.
They covered distances of 420km and 270km and reached an altitude of about 50km before falling into the sea, they said.
Stephen Biegun, the US special representative for North Korea, speaks to reporters at South Korea's Foreign Ministry. Source: AP
Analysts said it was too soon to say exactly what kind of missiles they were.
"You don't know what missile it is just from how far it flew," said Yang Uk, a senior research fellow at the Korea Defence and Security Forum.
Such a range would probably exceed that of most of the rockets North Korea fired on Saturday from its east coast into the ocean, sharply raising tension at a time of stalemate in its talks with the United States.
"North Korea has returned to its classic escalation tactics from before," Yang added. "I believe they will keep escalating by using what appear to be short-range missiles, something that will not cause the US to react right away."
After Thursday's launch, South Korea's military said it had stepped up monitoring and security in case of another launch, and was working with the United States to get additional information on the missiles involved.
A South Korean man watches a TV screen showing a local news program reporting on North Korea's threats to strike Guam with ballistic missiles Source: AP
Japan's defence ministry said it had not detected any ballistic missile in its territorial waters or exclusive economic zone and saw no direct impact on security.
On Saturday, North Korea also launched at least one short-range ballistic missile, which analysts said could travel up to 500km.
The launch, from an east coast area, was the North's first test of a ballistic missile since launching an intercontinental ballistic missile in November 2017.
Kim Jong Un supervised the firing, it's understood. Source: SIPA USA
This week, North Korea lashed out at the United States and South Korea, saying Saturday's tests were "regular and self-defensive" and rejecting the notion that they were provocative.
South Korea had responded to those tests by calling for an end to acts that escalate military tension.
A photo released by the official North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) shows North Korea's earlier rocket launch during a 'strike test'. Source: Supplied
Kim's second summit with President Donald Trump in Vietnam in February broke down with the United States insisting the North give up its nuclear program and the North seeking sanctions relief.
