Why has North Korea fired a missile ahead of US-South Korea drills?

Published 12 August 2026 · world

Pyongyang has repeatedly condemned US–South Korea military drills, claiming they are a ‘rehearsal for invasion’. North Korea has fired a ballistic missile into waters off

Pyongyang has repeatedly condemned US–South Korea military drills, claiming they are a ‘rehearsal for invasion’. North Korea has fired a ballistic missile into waters off its east coast, just days before the United States and South Korea begin annual military drills known as the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises in the region. The launch at 6am on Wednesday (21:00 GMT) was the second reported North Korean missile test in less than a week amid tensions over Pyongyang’s growing military ties with Russia and concerns about its expanding weapons programme. North Korea has not immediately commented on the latest launch but has repeatedly condemned annual US-South Korea drills in its neighbourhood. Washington and Seoul say the exercises are defensive and designed to prepare their forces for potential North Korean attacks. Here is what you need to know What has happened? South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said a ballistic missile was launched from the Wonsan area, where a port city and naval base are located in Kangwon Province, North Korea, at about 6am local time (21:00 GMT). It flew for more than 700km (435 miles) before landing in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan. The launch was also detected by Japanese authorities, which reported that the missile had fallen outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone. South Korea’s Office of Security convened an emergency meeting and expressed concern over North Korea’s continued ballistic missile launches.

It urged Pyongyang to halt provocations which violate UN Security ⁠⁠⁠⁠Council resolutions. The launch came six days after North Korea fired another ballistic missile from the same area. Pyongyang did not confirm that earlier launch either, which Seoul, Washington and Tokyo all said they detected on August 6. Why did North Korea fire a missile into the sea? North Korea has provided no explanation for the missile launch. However, the timing strongly suggests it was partly intended as a warning ahead of the US-South Korea military exercises, analysts say. North Korea has previously condemned annual joint drills by Washington and Seoul, which it regards as rehearsals for an invasion. The US and South Korea say these are defensive exercises only, designed to prepare for potential attacks by Pyongyang. North Korea has also previously responded to major US-South Korea exercises with missile tests and threatening rhetoric. Lim Eul-chul, a North Korea expert at Kyungnam University in South Korea’s South Gyeongsang Province, told AFP that Pyongyang has “never simply let” a South Korea-US joint military exercise pass without a response. He added that the latest launch can be seen as a message that North Korea is closely watching the upcoming drills and could take further action if it considers it necessary. Where are the US and South Korea holding joint military drills? The Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises will take place in South Korea from August 17-27 on and around the Korean Peninsula.