S. Korea says 2 projectiles fired by North

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea said North Korea fired two unidentified projectiles into its eastern waters on Thursday as it revives its testing activity to expand its military capabilities and pressure the Biden administration while nuclear negotiations remain stalled.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the U.S. and South Korean militaries were analyzing the launches that were conducted from an area on the North’s eastern coast. It didn’t immediately say whether the weapons were ballistic or how far they flew.

Japan’s Defense Ministry said the North Korean weapons were possibly ballistic missiles and did not reach its waters.

The launches came a day after U.S. and South Korean officials said the North fired short-range weapons presumed to be cruise missiles into its western sea over the weekend.

The North has so far ignored the Biden administration’s efforts to reach out.

Kim’s sister last week berated the United States over its latest round of combined military exercises with South Korea, describing the drills as an invasion rehearsal and warned Washington to “refrain from causing a stink” if it wants to “sleep in peace” for the next four years.

Just hours after Thursday’s launches, South Korea Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong was to meet with visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Seoul for discussions on North Korea and other regional issues.

South Korea’s presidential office said it will hold an emergency National Security Council meeting to discuss the launches.

South Korea’s Defense Ministry said the North’s short-range tests on Sunday were its first missile firings since April 2020. President Joe Biden played down those launches, telling reporters, “There’s no new wrinkle in what they did.”