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North Korea fires ballistic missiles into sea

The government is believed to be considering sending a letter to a North Korea sanctions committee under the UN Security Council(UNSC) to request a probe into the North’s launch of two ballistic missiles conducted early Thursday.

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South Korea’s defence ministry said the two missiles were fired around 5:20am and flew some 500km, before landing in the East Sea (Sea of Japan) off the North Korean port city of Wonsan, a ministry spokesman said.

Though Moscow also mentioned that the military drills put unprecedented military and political pressure on North Korea and as the clear target of these exercises it should be concerned for its safety, warnings of a legal basis for invasion from the Russian Federation are highly notable.

Recent North Korean missile and nuclear weapon tests also have led to more sanctions on the North.

It launched a long-range rocket in February drawing worldwide criticism and sanctions from its rival, South Korea.

The firings come a day after North Korea caused a new stir by publicizing a purported mock-up of a key part of a nuclear warhead, with leader Kim Jong Un repeating a claim that his country has developed miniaturized atomic bombs that can be placed on missiles.

North Korean state media released photographs they said showed Kim Jong Un inspecting a spherical miniaturised warhead.

The ship is among 31 vessels blacklisted by China’s Ministry of Transport after they were covered by harsher sanctions on North Korea that were approved by the U.N. Security Council last week. “The indiscriminate nuclear strike … will clearly show those keen on aggression and war, the military mettle of (North Korea)”, North Korea’s government said in a statement posted through the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The worldwide community has, with uncommon unanimity, condemned North Korea’s threats to use nuclear weapons on the United States.

Tensions have been especially high this week as US and South Korean forces hold their annual joint military exercises known as Key Resolve and Foal Eagle. The picture has not been independently verified by experts and is not dated.

Kim said on Wednesday his country has successfully miniaturised nuclear warheads that can be mounted on ballistic missiles.

The Pentagon said this week it had not seen North Korea demonstrate a capability to miniaturize a nuclear warhead.

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Military tensions on the divided Korean peninsula have been on the rise since the North carried out its 4th nuclear test in January, followed by a long-range rocket launch last month.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un meets nuclear weapons scientists and technicians in this undated