The presidential National Security Office(NSO) has strongly condemned North Korea's latest launch of ballistic missiles, calling them a serious provocation.

The NSO held a meeting at the crisis management center at the presidential office on Thursday, chaired by National Security Adviser Kim Sung-han.

The meeting was held after the Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected three short-range ballistic missiles fired from the Sunan area in Pyongyang toward the East Sea at 6:29 p.m. on Thursday.

The NSO said it received a briefing on the launches from the JCS and checked the military's joint readiness posture with the U.S.

It added that the participants of the meeting strongly condemned the missile launches, pointing out that the repeated launches are provocative acts that escalate tensions on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia, and pose a serious threat to global peace and security.

The NSO also criticized the North’s continuing provocations with ballistic missiles launches, neglecting the lives and safety of its people even after the outbreak of COVID-19.