North Korea fires 10 missiles day after Trump curtails South Korea joint drills
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- North Korea launched approximately 10 short-range ballistic missiles from the Pyongyang region toward its eastern waters at around 5pm local time on Thursday, according to South Korea's joint chiefs of staff.
- Donald Trump had ordered the Pentagon to "substantially reduce" the 11-day Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises with South Korea just before they began on Monday, citing his relationship with Kim Jong-un and South Korea's refusal to support him over the war against Iran.
- Kim Yo-jong dismissed Trump's overture as "not worthy of comment," saying the drills' "provocative, aggressive nature" was unchanged despite their trimmed duration and size, though she notably kept personal relations between her brother and Trump as "still excellent."
- South Korea's presidential national security council held an emergency meeting after the launches, urging North Korea to halt ballistic missile tests that are banned under UN Security Council resolutions.
- Japan's prime minister's office detected a suspected missile launch and was coordinating monitoring with the US and South Korea.
- Kim Yo-jong denied Trump had received any response from Kim Jong-un to his request for a conversation, even as Trump told reporters Wednesday he would meet the North Korean leader "this year."
Why it matters: Trump's gamble that scaling back the 11-day Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises would buy goodwill produced a 10-missile barrage within roughly 24 hours and a public dismissal from Pyongyang calling the reduction insufficient. The notably restrained tone from Kim Yo-jong — no fiery rhetoric, "excellent" personal ties preserved — suggests Pyongyang is keeping the door open but holding out for bigger US concessions before resuming substantive talks.
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