North Korea fires ballistic missile as Blinken visits Seoul

North Korea fired at least one suspected ballistic missile in a defiant show of force that coincided with a visit to Seoul by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is taking part in a Summit for Democracy being held in the capital.

North Korea fired the missile toward waters off the east of the peninsula, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. The missile appears to have already fallen, Japan’s Coast Guard said, adding later a second one may have also been launched and appears to have landed. National broadcaster NHK said both missiles likely splashed down outside of the country’s exclusive economic zone.

Further details were not immediately available. North Korea has often engaged in provocations designed to coincide with high-profile political events involving the U.S., South Korea and Japan.

This would be the second ballistic missile Kim Jong Un’s regime has fired this year after shooting off an intermediate-range rocket in mid-January designed to hit U.S. bases in Asia. The state’s official media said that projectile was a “hypersonic” missile, indicating it deployed a reentry vehicle for carrying a nuclear warhead that can change its flight path at high speeds.

Kim and his official media have been lashing out frequently at the U.S. and South Korea, with the North Korean leader saying the time for peaceful unification is over and striking the concept from the country’s constitution.

Prior to the launch, Kim had guided military drills that included fire from an artillery unit capable of hitting Seoul, overseeing training that simulated storming a South Korean border guard post and jumping in the country’s newest tank to take it for a spin. These stepped up threats against his neighbor to the south that coincided with it holding joint military training with the U.S.

The U.S. and South Korea concluded their annual Freedom Shield exercises on March 14, which included training on land, sea and in the air against contingencies posed by North Korea. Pyongyang has bristled for decades against joint drills, calling them a prelude to an invasion.

Kim said in February he has the legal right to annihilate South Korea. Kim has also shown no inclination that he wants to return to stalled nuclear disarmament talks and meanwhile has rolled out a series of new weapons designed to deliver nuclear strikes on the U.S. and its allies in Asia.

This has led to some speculation that Kim has turned the corner on his bellicose outbursts and is readying for battle. U.S. President Joe Biden has warned Kim that it would mean the end of his regime if he tried to launch a nuclear attack.