North Korea fires short-range ballistic missile, South Korea's military says

North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile towards the sea east of the Korean Peninsula, marking the latest in a series of weapons tests this year.

North Korea fired a ‌short-range ballistic missile on Thursday toward the sea east of the Korean Peninsula, South Korea's military said, marking the latest in a series of weapons tests ‌this year. Japan's government said Pyongyang launched what could be a ballistic missile. The ‌launch followed a series of tests this year, including short-range ballistic missiles, artillery rockets and other tactical weapons designed to bolster the isolated state's military capabilities. The most recent confirmed ⁠weapons ​test, in late ⁠June, involved an upgraded 240-mm multiple-launch rocket system, tactical ballistic missiles and a 155-mm self-propelled ⁠howitzer, North Korean state media KCNA said. The South Korean military said in a ​statement that it had heightened its alert for further firings, closely sharing information ⁠with the United States and Japan. The missile test could be related to recent ⁠criticism ​by Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, of Japan's firing of Tomahawk missiles and its ⁠military ambitions, according to Lim Eul-chul, a professor at Kyungnam University's Institute for Far ⁠Eastern Studies. It also ⁠came ahead of South Korean-U.S. joint military drills expected to be held soon, Lim added.