North Korea fires two short-range ballistic missiles as Kim visits Russia

North Korea has reportedly fired two short-range ballistic missiles as the country’s leader Kim Jong-un visits Russia to have a meeting with his Russian counterpart.

The South Korean military said on Wednesday its radars had detected “two short-range ballistic missiles fired by North Korea from the Sunan area towards the East Sea at around 11:43 to 11:53 today”, referring to the body of water also known as the Sea of Japan.

“Our military has strengthened surveillance and vigilance in preparation for further launches while maintaining full readiness by closely cooperating with the US,” the military added.

The Japanese coast guard also confirmed that two ballistic missiles were launched.

Japan’s top government spokesman Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters that the missiles “appear to have fallen outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone but we are analyzing details”.

Kim is in Russia with his top military officials and is set to meet President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday for talks focused on defense cooperation.