SOUTH KOREA: A South Korean defense ministry official has reported that South Korea and the United States fired eight surface-to-surface missiles early on Monday, 6 June, off South Korea's east coast after North Korea launched a barrage of short-range ballistic missiles the day before.

South Korea's Yonhap news agency has cited the South Korean military as saying that this action is a demonstration of "the capability and readiness to carry out precision strike" against the source of North Korea's missile launches or the command and support centers.

Yonhap also reported that the militaries of South Korea and the United States fired eight surface-to-surface missiles for over about 10 minutes starting at 4:45 am on Monday, in response to the eight short-range ballistic missiles fired by the North on Sunday, probably its largest single test yet.

Additionally, an official from South Korea's Defence Ministry confirmed that eight Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) had been fired.

While delivering a speech at the Memorial Day event on Monday, 6 June, South Korean President, Yoon Suk-yeol, said that North Korea's missile and nuclear weapons programs have reached a level where they pose a threat to regional and world peace.

North Korea has conducted a flurry of missile launches this year, from hypersonic weapons to tests of its largest intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) for the first time in nearly five years.

Washington and Seoul officials also recently warned that North Korea appeared ready to resume nuclear weapons tests for the first time since 2017.

^{PHOTO: MISSILES BEING LAUNCHED FROM LAUNCHERS}