North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile toward the Sea of Japan from its east coast.
Japan’s Ministry of Defense reported the launch.
The missile was launched at around 3:00 p.m. local time on September 20.
According to Japanese estimates, the missile reached a maximum altitude of about 60 km and traveled approximately 440 km. It landed in the Sea of Japan, outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
Meanwhile, South Korean authorities stated that the missile was launched from the Wonsan area.
The missile launch coincided with the end of the multinational Freedom Edge 26 military exercises, held in the Indo-Pacific region.
Previously, North Korea conducted ballistic missile launches on September 12. South Korea detected several missiles launched from the Wonsan area on the east coast.
This happened the day after the conclusion of trilateral military exercises involving the United States, South Korea, and Japan.
In August, North Korea launched at least two more missiles. Seoul assessed the August 12 launch as North Korea’s 11th suspected ballistic missile test of 2026. On August 6, a short-range ballistic missile was launched from the same area, marking the first such activity since late June.
In early June 2026, during a visit to a facility operated by the Missile Administration, Kim Jong Un ordered a 2.5-fold increase in ballistic and cruise missile production.
In addition, North Korea is increasingly developing new models of ballistic and cruise missiles designed for different launch platforms. These include the new Hwasal-2 cruise missiles, which are described as a core component of North Korea’s missile arsenal.
Variants such as the Pulhwasal-3-31 are also designed to be launched from maritime platforms, including surface ships and submarines. These missiles were developed based on the Hwasal-2 model.
Source: Militaryni
