North Korea Launches Projectiles, Slams US-South Korea Military Drills

SEOUL - North Korea launched a fresh round of projectiles early Tuesday, South Korea's military said, an apparent show of anger at U.S.-South Korea military exercises that began this week.

The unidentified projectiles were launched from South Hwanghae Province in the western part of the country, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. The statement added that Seoul is monitoring the situation in case of additional launches. It gave no other details.

The launches came as North Korea's foreign ministry released a statement slamming joint U.S.-South Korean military drills. It warned Pyongyang may abandon nuclear talks and take a "new road."

"Although the U.S. and South Korean authorities are playing all sorts of tricks to justify the joint military exercise, its aggressive nature can neither be covered up nor whitewashed in any manner," said a North Korean foreign ministry official quoted in the Korean Central News Agency.

Warning from North Korea

North Korea had warned Washington and Seoul several times not to conduct the drill, which started Monday with computer-based simulations.

"The U.S. and South Korean authorities know too well that the joint military exercise will cause a backlash from us. Then what is its ulterior motive to conduct it at any cost, which only provokes and threatens us?" the KCNA statement said.

"The prevailing situation is dramatically dampening down our desire for implementing the DPRK-U.S. agreements and the inter-Korean agreements, which also affects the prospect of future dialogue," it added.

North Korea has conducted at least four launches in recent weeks — an apparent attempt to increase pressure on Washington and Seoul to make concessions ahead of possible nuclear talks.

Launches don't upset Trump

The North's other recent launches have involved short-range ballistic missiles or multiple rocket launchers. It is not clear how far the projectiles launched Tuesday traveled.

U.S. President Donald Trump, who wants to continue talks, has shrugged off the launches.

Trump has met North Korean leader Kim Jong Un three times since last June. At the June meeting, both sides agreed to soon hold working-level talks. But North Korea has not agreed to set a date to begin those talks.

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