North Korea Fires About 10 Short-Range Missiles Into Sea of Japan

North Korea fired about 10 short-range ballistic missiles from its east coast into the Sea of Japan on Thursday, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, the military command that oversees South Korea's armed forces. The launch took place at about 12:30 p.m. (03:30 GMT) from an area around Wonsan, a city on North Korea's eastern coast. Short-range ballistic missiles travel along a high arc before coming down on their target.

Japan's Defence Ministry confirmed the launch of what could be a ballistic missile that fell outside Japan's exclusive economic zone, the stretch of sea where a coastal country has rights over the resources in the water and on the seabed.

The launches came during an open dispute between the two Koreas over a landmine explosion. The blast occurred on September 21 in the demilitarized zone, the strip of land along the border where military activity is restricted, and injured three South Korean soldiers. A joint investigation by South Korea and the United Nations concluded that North Korea had planted the landmines more than a year ago.

North Korea has rejected that conclusion. It sent a letter to the UN Security Council this week accusing Seoul of fabricating the landmine explosion.

South Korea has taken a different course on communication. Last Friday, it invited North Korea to hold military talks to discuss restoring communication channels between the two sides.