North Korea fires two ballistic missiles, blames US drills

SEOUL: North Korea fired two ballistic missiles on Thursday and claimed its recent blitz of sanctions-busting tests were necessary countermeasures against joint military drills by the United States and South Korea.

As the United Nations Security Council met to discuss Pyongyang´s Tuesday launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile over Japan, North Korea blamed Washington for “escalating the military tensions on the Korean peninsula”.

The recent launches -- six in less than two weeks -- were “the just counteraction measures of the Korean People´s Army”, Pyongyang´s foreign ministry said in a statement Thursday. Seoul, Tokyo and Washington have ramped up joint military drills in recent weeks, including large-scale naval manoeuvres and anti-submarine exercises.

The security allies carried out a joint “missile defence exercise” in waters off the peninsula Thursday, Seoul´s military said, involving a US navy destroyer from the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier´s strike group. That was “expected to further solidify operational capabilities and posture to respond to North Korean missile provocations”, Seoul´s military said.