North Korea Launches Ballistic Missile

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korea says North Korea has launched a close-range ballistic missile and other weapons toward the sea. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said that Tuesday’s launches prompted it to bolster a surveillance posture. It was North Korea’s first weapons launch event since April 19. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has focused on expanding his nuclear and missile arsenals since nuclear diplomacy with U.S. President Donald Trump collapsed in 2019. Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to return to talks with Kim. But Pyongyang has so far ignored the overtures and urged Washington to drop demands for the North’s nuclear disarmament as a precondition for talks.