Kim Jong Un tests ballistic arsenal while Antony Blinken visits South Korea: North Korea fires missiles off the coast after claiming joint US-Seoul military drills were an invasion rehearsal

North Korea put on a show of force Monday firing short-range ballistic missiles into the sea for the first time in weeks as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited South Korea for a conference on advancing democracy.

South Korea's military reported that several missiles were fired from the capital Pyongyang at around 8am and flew about 180 miles. They landed off the east coast. 

It condemned the launches as a 'clear provocation and said it was sharing information on them with the United States and Japan.

The apparent test came soon after joint U.S.-South Korea military drills and amid fears that North Korea is building missiles for export to Russia  and its war in Ukraine. 

Tensions on the Korean peninsula remain high, and North Korea recently condemned joint U.S.-South Korean military drills as 'reckless' and part of an invasion plot.

People in South Korea watch television coverage of North Korean missile launches. The apparent tests were condemned by the U.S., Japan, and South Korea

In this photo provided by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, center left, and his daughter inspect training of the Korean People's Army airborne units in North Korea Friday, March 15, 2024

The U.S. State Department also weighed in on the launches by the secretive regime of Kim Jong Un Monday, saying they violated several United Nations Security Council resolutions as well as posing a threat to the region.

Japan's defense ministry said three missiles were launched and traveled with a maximum altitude of about 30 miles.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida condemned the launches after his country's coast guard also reported the firing of what it said appeared to be a ballistic missile and specified that it had already ended its flight.

South Korea's Defence Minister Shin Won-sik said the North has been testing a new type of short-range missile in recent weeks amid fears they were being made for Russia.

'It is unclear whether the missiles are for frontline reinforcement or exports to Russia,' he told a news conference. 

'But there is a significant possibility that they were making final performance checks before exporting them to Russia.'

North Korean leader Kim was one of the few world leaders to send congratulations to Russian President Vladimir Putin after he claimed victory in a stage-managed election. 

'I will firmly join hands with you as we meet the demands of the times to provide a new turning point for the Russian-DPRK (North Korean) friendship that has long historical roots and traditions, and push forward to build a strong nation,' he was reported to have said in a message to Putin. 

Soon after the missile launch, Blinken met South Korea's president and foreign minister for talks on North Korea and the alliance between Seoul and Washington.

A South Korean K1A2 tank fires during a joint live fire exercise as part of the annual Freedom Shield joint military exercise between South Korea and the United States at a military training field in Pocheon, South Korea

Members of South Korea's Army Special Warfare Command prepare for their military training with U.S. Special Operations Command

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks during the Third Summit for Democracy in Seoul

He also used the third Summit for Democracy to emphasize the need to ensure that developments in artificial intelligence and other technologies sustain democratic values.

'Revitalizing democracy will also require us to shape the technological future, that's inclusive, that's rights respecting, directed at driving progress in people's lives,' he said.

'As authoritarian and repressive regimes deploy technologies to undermine democracy and human rights, we need to ensure that technology sustains and supports democratic values and norms.'

The U.S. has about 80,000 troops in South Korea and Japan. 

Two weeks ago, American and South Korean forces launched joint exercise, provoking the anger of Pyongyang.

In a statement carried by state media, the North’s Defense Ministry said it “strongly denounces the reckless military drills of the U.S. and (South Korea) for getting more undisguised in their military threat to a sovereign state and attempt for invading it.”