NKorea conducts short-range guided missile test, SKorean officials say

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - North Korea fired several short-range guided missiles Friday in an apparent test launch, South Korean officials and media reports said.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed the launches, but said it was still investigating how many missiles were fired and where exactly the tests occurred.

"The short-range missile launches are believed to be part of a routine exercise that North Korea has conducted annually on the east and the west coasts in the past," the Joint Chiefs said in a statement.

Japan's public broadcaster and other media, citing Japanese and U.S. sources, reported that the missiles were surface-to-ship. Japan's Defence Ministry and Foreign Ministry could not immediately confirm the reports, but were investigating.

Public broadcaster NHK said the short-range missiles were fired on the east and west coast of the Korean Peninsula earlier Friday. Officials are currently investigating further details, including the number of missiles fired.

NHK said the missiles were shorter-range, and were not North Korea's existing Rodong or Taepodong I ballistic missiles. Japan's NTV network reported that the missiles were surface-to-ship.

It was not immediately known where they landed.

© The Canadian Press, 2007