The launches come days after South Korea and the United States concluded military exercises that Pyongyang considers an invasion rehearsal.
North Korea fired short-range ballistic missiles into its eastern waters as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken prepared to open a democracy summit in neighboring South Korea, officials said.
“North Korea fired an unspecified ballistic missile into the East Sea,” the US Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Monday, referring to the body of water also known as the Sea of Japan.
The Japanese Coast Guard, which confirmed the launches, said the objects appeared to have already fallen.
The launches come days after the United States and South Korea concluded 11 days of joint military exercises called Freedom Shield.
North Korea has long condemned joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea, calling them rehearsals for an invasion.
Pyongyang warned earlier this month that Seoul and Washington would pay a “heavy price” for this year's Freedom Shield exercises, which involved twice as many troops as last year.
About 27,000 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea, where the exercises were held.
North Korea's test on Monday was the latest in a series of weapons demonstrations this year, including a missile with a maneuverable hypersonic warhead on January 14.
democracy summit
Shortly after the missile launches, Blinken and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol took the stage at the opening of the Democracy Summit, which this year will be hosted by South Korea.
Both Blinken and Yoon talked about how technology could be used to foster democracy, but also undermine it.
Blinken's comments came after the US House of Representatives last week passed a bill that could ban the popular social media app TikTok, owned by Chinese developer ByteDance.
The democracy summit, an initiative of US President Joe Biden, has drawn criticism in recent years due to its selective guest list, with countries such as Thailand and Turkey reportedly excluded.
