Anchor: North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea on Thursday morning. The provocation came after it sent balloons carrying garbage into South Korea earlier this week. Such acts are viewed as attempts by the regime to divert attention away from its latest failed launch of a military spy satellite.
Choi You Sun reports.

Report: South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff(JCS) said the North fired more than ten projectiles, presumed to be short-range ballistic missiles(SRBMs), toward the East Sea from the Sunan area of the capital Pyongyang on Thursday morning. 

The missiles traveled over 350 kilometers before falling into the sea.

The JCS said the military tracked and conducted surveillance of the missiles immediately upon detection, and that it has closely shared related information with the U.S. and Japan.

While an analysis of the missiles is under way, they are presumed to be the North's KN-25 super-large caliber multiple launch rocket system, considering their flight distance.

The latest launch comes 13 days after Pyongyang's previous firing of SRBMs, with some assessing it to be unusual for the regime to fire over ten missiles at once.

The JCS strongly condemned the launch as a clear provocation that threatens peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, before pledging to maintain capabilities and readiness for an overwhelming response under its firm combined defense posture with the U.S.

Starting around 7:50 a.m. Thursday, the military also detected GPS jamming signals near the northwestern border islands, with no reports of damage.

Pyongyang has been conducting a series of provocations since failing to launch a second military reconnaissance satellite late Monday.

On Tuesday, the regime sent balloons carrying trash across the inter-Korean border, part of an apparent attempt to divert attention from the satellite failure.
Choi You Sun, KBS World Radio News.