North Korea fires missiles, Xi visit looms
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- North Korea launched several close‑range ballistic missiles from Chongju, North Pyongan Province, at about 1 p.m. KST on May 26, which traveled roughly 80 km before falling into the sea west of the Korean Peninsula.
- South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff reported detection of additional projectiles, including multiple locket launchers, and confirmed intelligence sharing with the United States and Japan to analyze the launch.
- North Korea recorded its eighth ballistic missile test this year, the first since a month‑old short‑range missile salvo.
- Xi Jinping is slated to visit Pyongyang for a summit with Kim Jong Un in the coming weeks, according to media reports, making the launch’s westward direction noteworthy.
Why it matters: South Korea, the United States and Japan gain fresh data on North Korea’s missile program, while Beijing faces diplomatic balancing ahead of Xi’s summit; the eighth test this year forces tighter security coordination.
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