N. Korea fires two ballistic missiles

North Korea fired two mid-range missiles into the East Sea on Friday in the latest show of force against the ongoing joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States, but one missile appears to have blown up in flight, official sources said.

One ballistic missile was fired at around 5:55 a.m. from near Sukchon, in the western part of the country, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) was quoted as saying by Yonhap.

The missile, believed to be a mid-range Rodong model, flew about 800 kilometers across North Korea before falling into the sea off the east coast.

“The missile hit waters within the Japanese Air Defense Identification Zone,” the JCS said.

About 22 minutes after the first launch, South Korean military's radar detected what appeared to be a second missile fired from the same area. But the radar lost track of it at an altitude of 17 kilometers, the military said.

Officials said the second missile may have exploded in the air without reaching its target area.

“An analysis so far indicates it was a missile, but more examination is needed to verify the data,” the JCS said.

Military officials here said the first ballistic missile appeared to have been launched from a transporter erector launcher, a mobile missile vehicle.

This came eight days after the reclusive state fired two short-range missiles in an apparent show of anger against new U.N. sanctions and Seoul-Washington joint military drills that will end today.

China has urged the North to refrain from provocative actions to avoid raising tensions on the Korean Peninsula.