Three North Korean Missile Launches Follow Threats Of 'Momentous' Action

North Korea fired three short-range projectiles off its east coast, South Korea’s military has said.

Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the three launches were made from a town in the South Hamgyong province with missiles flying as far as 125 miles.

The second set of weapons testing from Pyongyang in the last 10 days follows a four-month hiatus and goes against condemnation from five European members of the UN Security Council.

In response, North Korea said: "The reckless behaviour of these countries instigated by the US will become a fuse that will trigger our yet another momentous reaction."

The US has said sanctions on North Korea will stay in place unless it takes significant steps toward denuclearisation.

Last December, Mr Kim expressed deep frustration over a deadlock with the US and said North Korea would not denuclearise as long as Mr Trump maintained his policy.

He also said a new "strategic" weapon would be unveiled soon and that they would no longer be bound by the self-imposed weapons test moratorium.

Talks have been stalled since a failed second summit in early 2019 between the two leaders in Vietnam, with disputes over sanctions relief from the US following.

Leif-Eric Easley, Associate Professor at Seoul’s Ewha Womans University, believes the recent coronavirus outbreak could be "exceeding North Korea’s public health capacity".

“At the domestic level, his regime claims to protect the people with drastic quarantine measures and military exercises against external threats," said Professor Easley.

"Pyongyang may be seeking international assistance, but remains obsessed with not appearing in an inferior position to Seoul."

Cover image: Library image of Kim Jong Un at a submarine site in 2019 (Picture: KCNA).