South Korea says North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward its eastern waters

North Korea on Friday fired a suspected short-range ballistic missile toward its eastern waters, South Korea’s military said, as Pyongyang steps up its testing activity while talks with Washington and Seoul remain stalled.

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea on Friday fired a suspected short-range ballistic missile toward its eastern waters, South Korea’s military said, as Pyongyang steps up its testing activity while talks with Washington and Seoul remain stalled.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the weapon flew about 434 miles cross-country after being fired from an inland area around the western county of Taekwan.

It said South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities had monitored North Korea’s launch preparations in advance and were now analyzing details of the test. South Korea’s military has strengthened surveillance and vigilance against the possibility of additional North Korean launches and is sharing relevant information with the United States and Japan, the joint chiefs said in a statement.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told reporters that the missile was believed to have landed in waters outside the country’s exclusive economic zone and most likely did not cause any damage. North Korea did not immediately confirm the launch.

Pete Hegseth visits DMZ ahead of talks on U.S. troops in South Korea00:46North Korea has been accelerating the pace of its weapons testing in recent weeks, including the firing of purported hypersonic missiles and cruise missiles last month that it said expanded the capabilities of its nuclear-armed military.