March 29, 2023: On Monday, North Korea is firing two short-range ballistic rockets into the sea off its east coast, South Korea’s military stated, the latest in a series launching as a U.S. aircraft carrier is set to come back in South Korea.

The missiles were firing from North Hwanghae province at 7:47 a.m. and flew about 370 kilometres, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.

According to the Japanese government, both missiles appear to have landed outside the exclusive economic zone of Japan.

South Korea’s military “strongly condemned” the launching as a grave provocation to violate United Nations Security Council resolutions and is known for an immediate halt.

“We have to witness North Korea’s different activities and maintain a company readiness posture based on the capability to respond to any provocations overwhelmingly,” the JCS said in a statement, which added that it would continue military drills regarding the U.S. as planned.

The Japanese administration also lodged a “strong protest” with North Korea, stating its missile launches threaten the safety and peace of Japan, the area and the international community.

On Monday, its launches came as the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and transfer from its accompanying strike company are scheduled to dock near the South Korean naval base in the southeastern port of Busan.

Before it came, the carrier was to stage joint maritime exercises with South Korean forces off the Korean peninsula’s south area, South Korea’s defence ministry stated.

The ministry said the carrier’s planned visit, marking the first from the USS Ronald Reagan visit, was arranged as an area of efforts to have U.S. “strategic assets” in the place to deter North Korea

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On Wednesday, North Korea is ramping up its military tests in the latest weeks, including firing multiple cruise missiles that Pyongyang said were aimed at practising tactical nuclear attacks.

On Friday, North Korea stated that it had tested a new nuclear-capable underwater which attacks drones, as leader Kim Jong Un is warning that joint military drills from the U.S. and South Korea should stop.

The allies are concluding their regular springtime exercises, Freedom Shield 23, in the previous week. Still, they have other field training continuing, including amphibious landing drills affecting a U.S. assault ship and the activities with the U.S. carrier.

Pyongyang bristled at the allies’ drills, saying they were preparing to invade the North.

South Korea and the United States state that the exercises are defensive.