North Korea fired two short-range missiles from a point off its east coast today, South Korea’s military said, less than an hour after Pyongyang warned of an “inevitable” response to military drills by South Korean soldiers earlier today. and the USA.

This latest action by North Korea comes as US President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, is in Tokyo for meetings with his Japanese and South Korean counterparts.

In Jake Sullivan’s meeting with South Korean National Security Adviser Cho Tae-yong and Japanese National Security Adviser Takeo Akiba today, they discussed North Korea’s missile program and confirmed that they will work closely together for Pyongyang to give up its nuclear weapons, according to a statement on the meeting released by Japan.

Japan’s defense ministry said the two ballistic missiles fell within the country’s exclusive economic zone (AOZ) following a possible irregular flight path. One fell into the Sea of ​​Japan about 110 km northwest of Hegura Island, part of the Ishikawa Peninsula, and the other about 250 km away, Japanese authorities said

The government is set to convene a meeting of the National Security Council, Kyodo News reported separately.

South Korean President Un Suk-yeol watched as thousands of South Korean and US troops took part in joint live-fire drills today, the latest show of force that allies say is needed as a deterrent to North Korea.

A spokesman for North Korea’s Ministry of National Defense said the high schools were escalating military tension in the region and that its forces would respond strictly to “any kind of protests or provocations by enemies.”