North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast on Thursday night, with both projectiles landing inside Japan's exclusive economic zone, Tokyo and Seoul said.
The launches came after North Korea warned earlier in the day it would take some action in response to massive live-fire drills by South Korea and the United States. The move also occurred while U.S. President Joe Biden's national security adviser was in Tokyo for meetings.
Japan's Defense Ministry said the missiles reached a maximum altitude of approximately 50 kilometers before falling within the country's EEZ, with the first one traveling about 850 km and the second flying around 900 km. A North Korean missile last landed inside Japan's EEZ, which extends some 370 km from its coastline, in February.
The missiles fired by North Korea on Thursday were "not linked to" a satellite launch attempt that the country had notified Japan of late last month, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirokazu Matsuno said at a press conference.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters there were no reports of damage by the missiles and said Tokyo lodged a protest with North Korea over the launches.
Pyongyang has said it will make another attempt to launch a spy satellite as soon as possible.
Matsuno, the top government spokesman, said Japan did not issue an order to destroy the missiles fired toward the Sea of Japan.
The missiles crashed into the sea some 250 km northwest of Hegura Island, located about 50 km off the coast of Japan's central prefecture of Ishikawa, according to the ministry.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the projectiles, which they identified as short-range ballistic missiles, were fired from the Sunan area of Pyongyang between 7:25 p.m. and 7:37 p.m.
North Korea had denounced the joint drills, which were conducted from May 25 through Thursday near its border with South Korea.
Its latest action also took place as White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan was in Tokyo to hold talks with his Japanese, Philippine and South Korean counterparts.
During a trilateral meeting with Takeo Akiba and Cho Tae Yong, the top national security advisers of Japan and South Korea, respectively, Sullivan discussed North Korea's weapons programs, including its "most recent provocations," and "identified next steps to strengthen their coordination," the White House said.
As part of efforts to further strengthen cooperation between the United States and its two Asian allies, the White House said Biden will host three-way talks with the leaders of Japan and South Korea in the United States "in the coming months."
The three advisers later released a statement condemning North Korea's action as a clear violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions.
Takehiro Funakoshi, head of the Japanese Foreign Ministry's Asian and Oceanian Affairs Bureau, also held phone talks with his U.S. and South Korean counterparts Sung Kim and Kim Gunn, respectively, reaffirming close trilateral cooperation.
Japan and South Korea have continued to be on alert over projectiles being fired by North Korea even after the expiration of an 11-day window on Sunday designated by Pyongyang for the launch of a satellite-carrying rocket.
The launch of what North Korea called a military reconnaissance satellite on May 31, the first day of the window, failed.
In February, a North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile fell inside Japan's EEZ. The projectile landed in the sea, west of the northernmost Japanese main island of Hokkaido.
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