North Korea launched approximately 10 ballistic missiles off its west coast on Saturday, according to defense officials in Seoul and Tokyo. The barrage comes as a direct response to the ongoing “Freedom Shield” joint military exercises conducted by the United States and South Korea.
Japan’s Ministry of Defense reported that the missiles were detected at approximately 1:34 PM local time, traveling in a northeastern direction. The projectiles reached an estimated maximum altitude of 80 kilometers and flew roughly 340 kilometers before landing in the East Sea (Sea of Japan), outside of Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
Escalation During “Freedom Shield”
The 10-day Freedom Shield exercises, involving thousands of troops, began earlier this week and are scheduled to run until March 19. Pyongyang has historically viewed these drills as a rehearsal for invasion.
Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, condemned the maneuvers, accusing Washington and Seoul of “muscle-flexing” and “destroying the stability” of the Korean Peninsula. This launch marks the third time North Korea has tested ballistic missiles since the beginning of 2024, following a cruise missile test from a new naval destroyer earlier this week.
Regional and Diplomatic Context
The launches occur amidst heightened global tension, with international attention largely fixed on the conflict in the Middle East involving the US, Israel, and Iran.
Despite the military escalation, there are whispers of potential diplomacy. Following a meeting in Washington, South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok indicated that US President Donald Trump remains open to the idea of resuming dialogue with Kim Jong Un.
“Meeting [Kim] is something good,” Donald Trump reportedly told the Prime Minister, suggesting a meeting could potentially coincide with a future visit to China.
While the two leaders met three times during Donald Trump’s first term—including a historic 2019 meeting at the Demilitarized Zone—those summits yielded no substantive progress toward denuclearization.
Currently, South Korean, Japanese, and US forces remain in a “heightened surveillance posture” to monitor for further provocations from the North. No damage to aircraft or ships has been reported following today’s launches.
