North Korea Fires Three Short-Range Ballistic Missiles Into Sea

North Korea has fired three short-range missiles into the sea off its east coast, according to the US military. 

The US Pacific Command revised its initial assessment that the first and third short-range missiles failed on Saturday during flight, to say they flew about 155 miles.

It said that the second missile appears to have blown up immediately and that none posed a threat to the US territory of Guam, towards which the North had previously warned it would fire missiles.

South Korea's presidential office and military said North Korea fired "several" projectiles in what was presumed to be a test of its 300-millimetre rocket artillery system.

Thousands of US and South Korean troops are currently taking part in joint military drills, which are mainly largely computer-simulated exercises.

Kim Dong-yub, a former South Korean military official who is now an analyst at Seoul's Institute for Far Eastern Studies, said that South Korean assessment does not necessarily contradict the US evaluation that the launches involved ballistic missiles.

North Korea's large artillery rockets blur the boundaries between artillery systems and ballistic missiles because they create their own thrust and are guided during delivery, Mr Kim said.

The presidential office in Seoul said the US and South Korean militaries will proceed with their war games "even more thoroughly" in response to the launch.

They are the first known missile firings since July, when the North successfully flight tested a pair of intercontinental ballistic missiles that analysts say could reach deep into the US mainland when perfected.

The White House said that President Donald Trump, who has warned that he would unleash "fire and fury" if the North continued its threats, was briefed on the latest North Korean activity and "we are monitoring the situation".