North Korea fires several ballistic missile

North Korea on Monday fired several ballistic missiles into the East Sea in an apparent protest against the ongoing joint military drills between South Korea and the United States, Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

The unidentified projectiles were launched from an area near the North's Dongchang-ri long-range missile site at 7:36 a.m. and flew about 1,000 kilometers before splashing into the East Sea, JCS said in a text message.

"We are conducting an analysis on the projectiles to determine their type and other specifications. It will take a while before we come up with a final analysis (based on U.S. satellite data)," the JCS said.

It could be an ICBM capable of reaching the U.S. mainland, an official at the defense ministry said.

The North test-fired a long-range ballistic missile at the Dongchang-ri or "Sohae" missile launch site in February last year.

Source: Yonhap News.