North Korea has fired two more projectiles into the East Sea in the early hours of Friday, further raising tensions on the peninsula. 

According to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, North Korea fired two projectiles from Tongchun, a country near the east coast of North Korean part of Gangwon Province. Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said that the military is analyzing the projectiles, and maintaining high level of readiness. South Korean and US militaries have yet to release details of the projectiles.

This is the sixth time the North has fired projectile weapons since July 25, and the eighth time since the beginning of the year. North Korea has defended the launches as being within their rights to self-defense, and heavily criticized the South for condemning the launches.

The North, which had halted missile tests since November 2017, began launching projectile weapons, including short-range ballistic missiles, from May 4.

The May 4 launch was followed by another on May 9. The projectiles launched on the two occasions are thought to be KN-23 missiles.

On Aug. 10, the North fired two projectiles, and declared that they were “test firing of new weapons.” The exact nature of the weapons fired on Aug. 10 remains unclear.

By Choi He-suk (cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)