North Korea fires cruise missiles 4th time this year, says Seoul

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - North Korea Friday launched new cruise missiles off its west coast, military in South Korea said.

South Korean military said it detected the launch of missiles from North Korea at around 11 a.m. (0200GMT) from its west coast.

However, the military did not specify the number of missiles, Seoul-based Yonhap News reported.

Pyongyang launched cruise missiles at least four times since early this year, including those from a submarine.

Seoul said it was “strengthening monitoring and vigilance, (and) our military has been closely coordinating with the United States to monitor additional signs of North Korea's provocations.”

The latest launch of cruise missiles came as North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visited a shipyard in the western city of Nampo.

Calling for the modernization of the shipbuilding process, Kim told the officials: "The strengthening of the naval force presents itself as the most important issue in reliably defending the maritime sovereignty of the country and stepping up the war preparations at present."

"This situation requires the shipbuilding industrial sector to achieve a fresh rapid development and consolidate its material and technical foundation," said Kim.

However, the state-run KCNA news did not specify when Kim visited the shipyard.

Pyongyang's missile launches came as Seoul has ramped up its military collaborations with the US and Japan.

South Korean military's special operations troops concluded this year's first combined exercise with US Green Berets which began on Jan. 22.