North Korea Fires Ballistic Missiles in Protest of Korea-US-Japan "Freedom Edge" Exercise

Missiles Also Launched During Last Month's South Korea-U.S. Ulchi Freedom Shield Exercise

Aircraft from Korea, the United States, and Japan conducted the "2026 Freedom Edge Exercise" on September 11 over the waters east and south of Jeju Island to enhance deterrence and response capabilities against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, and to protect peace and stability in the region. Photo by Joint Chiefs of Staff

North Korea launched ballistic missiles on September 12, the day after the conclusion of the regular trilateral military exercise "Freedom Edge" between Korea, the United States, and Japan. This is the first time North Korea has fired ballistic missiles in 23 days since August 20.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff stated on this day, "Several ballistic missiles launched from the vicinity of Wonsan, North Korea, towards the East Sea were detected at around 5:20 a.m." They added, "In preparation for additional launches, surveillance and vigilance have been intensified. At the same time, Korea, the United States, and Japan are closely sharing information regarding North Korean ballistic missiles and maintaining full readiness." It is presumed that this latest ballistic missile launch by North Korea is a response to the Freedom Edge military exercise, held from September 7 to 11 for five days over international waters east and south of Jeju Island, involving the three countries.

The Freedom Edge exercise, which includes major maritime and air assets from Korea, the United States, and Japan, was first held in June 2024 and this marks the fourth time. It is a multidomain training exercise aimed at strengthening trilateral interoperability to respond to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, as well as other regional threats. North Korea has criticized the Freedom Edge exercise as a "U.S.-led war demonstration," and on the first day of the latest drills, September 7, an official statement from North Korea’s defense minister warned that "we will also take strong and reflexive countermeasures from a position of strength," foreshadowing provocations.

On August 20, North Korea fired around 10 short-range ballistic missiles, presumed to be 600mm super-large multiple rocket launchers (KN-25), from the Pyongyang area towards the East Sea at around 5:00 p.m. At the time, the militaries of Korea and the United States were conducting the regular joint theater-level exercise "Ulchi Freedom Shield" (UFS) on the Korean Peninsula. North Korea appears to be responding to joint military drills, such as the UFS Korea-U.S. exercise and the Freedom Edge Korea-U.S.-Japan exercise—both targeting North Korean threats—by consecutively launching ballistic missiles.

With this latest action, North Korea has launched ballistic missiles for the 13th time so far this year. It is noteworthy that, as with the three previous launches since August 6, North Korea has not reported on the launch, leading to speculation over whether it will remain silent regarding this launch as well.

Meanwhile, on the same day North Korea fired the ballistic missiles, the Korean Central News Agency reported that United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres had sent a congratulatory message to North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for the 78th anniversary of the founding of the regime (September 9 Liberation Day). However, North Korea's ballistic missile launches constitute a violation of the United Nations Security Council sanctions against North Korea. Resolution 1718, adopted in 2006, demands that North Korea refrain from ballistic missile launches; and Resolution 2397, adopted in December 2017, "reaffirms that North Korea must not conduct further launches using ballistic missile technology, nuclear tests, or any other provocations."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.