N. Korea Opens New Year with Missile Launch

On Sunday, North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile as part of its first weapons test of the year.

The short-range ballistic missile was launched from the Ryongsong district of Pyongyang at 2:50 in the morning, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) of South Korea, who added that the missile travelled around 400 kilometres before crashing into the water.

Additionally, on Saturday, the North launched three short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea from the Chungwha County region of North Hwanghae Province.

The North fired "super-large" calibre artillery shells on Saturday and Sunday in sample tests, according to the official Korean Central News Agency of the North, which verified the launches on Sunday.

The North may have launched a missile for the second day in a row in retaliation to South Korea's test launch of a solid-fuel rocket on Friday in preparation for the deployment of its first spy satellite.