North Korea launches a ballistic missile towards the Sea of ​​Japan

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The South Korean military announced on Monday that North Korea had fired at least one projectile toward the East Sea, also known as the Sea of ​​Japan, in the latest in a series of missile tests conducted by Pyongyang recently, exacerbating tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a brief statement that North Korea “launched an unspecified projectile towards the East Sea,” without specifying whether the weapon was a ballistic missile or the range it traveled.

For its part, the Japanese Ministry of Defense reported that it had detected the launch of at least two suspected ballistic missiles, and estimated that they had landed in waters outside Japan's exclusive economic zone.

The launch came days after North Korea announced the success of a test of a medium-range hypersonic missile it conducted on October 3. It said that the launch included the use of artificial intelligence, and that the missile was “capable of changing its flight path at low altitude.”

On the other hand, on Friday, South Korea conducted the first test launch of a locally developed hypersonic glide vehicle. The presidential office said President Lee Jae-myung followed the test, describing the system as an "essential strategic capability" that could change the course of the battle thanks to its high speed and unpredictable trajectories.

Hypersonic glide vehicles are propelled into the upper layers of the atmosphere by booster rockets before gliding towards their targets at more than five times the speed of sound, making them more difficult to intercept.

In recent months, North Korea has intensified weapons tests to expand its arsenal of systems capable of carrying nuclear warheads. It has also conducted live fire exercises and launched a new warship, at a time when leader Kim Jong Un continues to stress his nuclear program and reject American and South Korean offers to resume long-stalled talks.

Tensions between the two Koreas also escalated after three South Korean soldiers were injured as a result of landmine explosions inside the demilitarized zone separating the two countries.