North Korea test fires 10 short-range ballistic missiles
What's the story
North Korea has fired around 10 short-range ballistic missiles toward the sea, South Korea's military reported on Thursday. The launches were detected from Wonsan, a coastal town in North Korea. In response, South Korea has heightened its surveillance and is coordinating with the United States and Japan over these developments.
Rising tensions
Tensions between North and South Korea
The missile launches come days after North Korea threatened to resume front-line propaganda loudspeaker broadcasts and deploy new weapons along the border.
Tensions between the two deepened after last month's landmine blasts that injured three South Korean soldiers.
Seoul accused North Korea of laying mines south of the military demarcation line, which resulted in the September 21 blasts, but Pyongyang denied responsibility and threatened reprisal if provoked.
Propaganda plans
Resuming propaganda broadcasts
Seoul later proposed talks to clarify border issues and prevent accidental clashes, a proposal that remains unanswered by Pyongyang.
Last week, North Korea announced plans to resume propaganda broadcasts along the border.
Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, said loudspeakers would be prepared for anti-South Korean propaganda broadcasts by the end of October.
Military display
Artillery batteries near border
North Korea has also positioned artillery batteries near the border, which South Korean officials believe are mostly for show.
Defense Ministry spokesperson Chung Binna said placing artillery where it could be easily seen "makes little tactical or military sense."
Reuters said its witnesses saw three North Korean armored vehicles, identified by South Korean experts as self-propelled 122-mm howitzers, positioned near the border with their gun barrels pointed south, this week.
Diplomatic developments
Kim Jong Un's visit to China
North Korea has conducted over 10 missile tests this year, with the last one on October 12 in ballistic missiles.
The missile launches are part of a series of weapons tests by North Korea in recent weeks, which involved submarine-launched cruise missiles and hypersonic missiles.
Amid the tension with the South, Kim Jong-un also made a surprise visit to China on Saturday, where he said North Korea will firmly carry forward "the invincible" friendship with China.