Seoul: North Korea fired another short-range ballistic missile toward the East Sea on Wednesday afternoon after launching multiple such missiles earlier in the day, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, in a rare back-to-back launch that came amid Pyongyang's hostile stance toward Seoul. The JCS reported detecting the missile from the Wonsan area in the North at around 2:20 p.m., noting it flew over 700 kilometers.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the provocation came just hours after the JCS detected short-range ballistic missiles also launched from the Wonsan area at around 8:50 a.m., which flew around 240 km before splashing into the sea. This marked the North's fifth confirmed ballistic missile launch this year. On Tuesday, the North also fired an unidentified projectile from the Pyongyang area, which is currently pending analysis by South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities. The projectile, believed to have been launched Tuesday morning, disappeared shortly after it was fired in an apparent failure.

The back-to-back launches followed President Lee Jae Myung's expression of regret over drone flights by individuals into the North at a Cabinet meeting Monday, highlighting the incidents have caused unnecessary military tension with Pyongyang. Last week, prosecutors indicted three individuals accused of flying drones into North Korea between September and January. Hours after Lee's remarks, Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un, issued a statement describing Lee as having a "frank and broad-minded" attitude.

However, North Korea's first vice foreign minister, Jang Kum-chol, dismissed the South Korean government's positive interpretation of Kim's message late Tuesday as a "pipe dream," suggesting the North's series of missile launches are a show of force aimed at conveying its unchanged hostile stance against Seoul. The North last fired multiple ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on March 14 during annual military drills by South Korea and the United States.

The JCS stated it is closely monitoring North Korea's movements and has shared relevant information with the U.S. side, emphasizing a robust South Korea-U.S. combined defense posture. The U.S. Forces Korea confirmed being "aware" of the recent missile launches, consulting closely with allies and partners. They assessed these events do not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to allies, reaffirming the United States' commitment to the defense of the U.S. homeland and allies in the region.

Pyongyang has yet to release any report on the consecutive launches.