North Korea launches missiles, Seoul says, after Trump floats Kim meet

North Korea executed over a dozen short-range ballistic missile launches into the East Sea shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump announced his intention to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later in the year. The missile tests followed a decision by Washington to scale back the scale of annual Ulchi Freedom Shield military exercises between the U.S. and South Korea.

North Korea has consistently criticized these joint drills, viewing them as invasion preparations, and has responded to the tests with their own weapons demonstrations. Trump, aiming to rebuild the relationship he established with Kim during his first term, indicated his desire to meet the North Korean leader again before the year's end.

The missile launches emerged several hours after Trump's remarks, causing South Korea and the U.S. to analyze the projectiles to ascertain their specific characteristics and capabilities. In response to the missile tests, South Korea convened an emergency security meeting and denounced the weapons launches as breaches of UN Security Council resolutions, while the U.S. military increased its readiness.

The shortened Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, scheduled to conclude on Friday, were halted roughly a week early at the request of the United States. Despite this, South Korea maintains approximately 28,500 U.S. troops on its soil as part of its ongoing security commitment to Seoul, stemming from the 1950-53 Korean War, which concluded with an armistice rather than a peace treaty.

South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back reaffirmed Seoul's opposition to officially recognizing North Korea as a nuclear-armed state. Meanwhile, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, who supports Trump's efforts to engage Pyongyang through dialogue and peace, stated he would back the U.S. president's initiatives.