Late last month, Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump met at the demilitarized zone on the border between the North and the South. It was in an effort to mend fences and proceed with talks on denuclearization. However, the latest action by Pyongyang appears to be a dampener. It has fired two short-range missiles from its soil into the sea. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) has confirmed this. One of these weapons traveled about 428 miles and its design appeared to be new. Both the missiles attained an altitude of approximately 31 miles and ended up in the Sea of Japan.

In the opinion of experts, one missile could be of a new type. Japan said the launches did not affect its national security.

BBC reports that North Korea expressed displeasure over the annual military exercises between South Korea and the United States. The North warned that such actions could have an adverse effect on denuclearization talks. There is no information on whether Kim Jong-un was present at the launch. South Korea's defense ministry has told Pyongyang that acts of this nature will not help to ease tension.

Process of denuclearization on bumpy ground

Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump met at the end of June at the DMZ and agreed to restart dialogue on denuclearization.

Subsequently, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo indicated starting of working-level talks in July. However, that has not yet happened. Instead, the US plans to have its joint military drills with South Korea next month. The North has condemned the military drills and said it is a "violation of the spirit." The two leaders had their first face-to-face talks in Singapore last year.

At the time, they discussed these exercises.

The BBC adds that at the meeting, the leader of North Korea agreed to stop nuclear testing and the launch of ICBMs. However, there are indications of activities at North Korea's main nuclear site.

It tends to suggest that the country could be pursuing work related to the manufacture of bomb fuel. Moreover, the country is able to develop new weapons in spite of strict economic sanctions. Recently, the state media mentioned about a submarine that could carry ballistic missiles.

Confusion reigns in the Korean Peninsula

According to CNN, the recent launch of projectiles by North Korea has the South worried. It says it is a new type of weapon and it could destabilize the ongoing peace process on the Korean Peninsula. One of the missiles traveled 265 miles, the other 428 miles before landing in the Sea of Japan. South Korea's Ministry of Defense views it “as a military threat.” A senior US administration official admitted knowledge of “reports of a short-range projectile launched from North Korea." Observers feel North Korea’s missile launch might have been its response to the restart of the US and South Korea joint military exercises next month.
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