SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea fired two cruise missiles off its west coast on Sunday in its first publicly known weapons test since US President Joe Biden took office, the South Korean news agency Yonhap reported on Wednesday.
The Yonhap report, which came after US officials said North Korea fired two short-range missiles over the weekend, said the South Korean military discovered the test, citing unnamed sources.
South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff said they could not immediately confirm the reports, but said Tuesday that they would be closely monitoring North Korea’s military activities in collaboration with the United States.
“What they fired were cruise missiles, not ballistic missiles, and they were discovered out of our fortune,” a Yonhap source was quoted as saying.
If confirmed, it would be North Korea’s first known weapons test since the launch of several short-range cruise missiles off the east coast last April.
Coverage by Hyonhee Shin; Adaptation by Stephen Coates
