North Korea Fires Unidentified Projectile into East Sea Amid UFS Drills; Likely Ballistic Missile in 8 Days

North Korea fired an unidentified projectile into the East Sea today (August 20), the Joint Chiefs of Staff announced.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff is currently analyzing the specifications and range of the North Korean projectile.

If the North Korean projectile is confirmed to be a ballistic missile, it marks a launch just 8 days after the previous one.

Previously, North Korea fired one ballistic missile into the East Sea from the Wonsan area at around 6 a.m. on the 12th.

At that time, North Korea's missile flew more than 700 km.

On the afternoon of the 6th as well, it launched one short-range ballistic missile into the East Sea from the Wonsan area.

However, North Korea did not report either launch through its state-run media, raising questions about the background.

This launch took place during the theater-level South Korea-U.S. joint Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS) exercises, which run from the 17th to the 21st.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.