North Korea fires launches multiple ballistic missiles into sea ahead of South Korea-Japan summit

North Korea launched another suspected ballistic missile, Japanese officials said Thursday, local time, hours before a planned summit between South Korea and Japanese leaders. 

The office of Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida tweeted about the launch. A follow-up tweet said the government was ensuring the safety “of aircraft, vessels, & other assets” and taking all possible measures “for precaution, incl. readiness for contingencies.”

NORTH KOREA TEST FIRES TWO CRUISE MISSILES FROM A SUBMARINE

The South Korean military said the missile was fired toward the East Sea. The launch came hours before South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and Kishida were slated to meet in Tokyo to discuss various issues, including 

It also came amid the ongoing South Korea-U.S. Freedom Shield (FS) exercise, which the North has decried as “preparations for a war of aggression” against it, South Korean Yonhap news agency reported. 

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On Tuesday, North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles, which landed off the country’s east coast, officials said.