North Korea defends March missile tests

North Korea on Wednesday defended a recent series of missile and rocket tests as justifiable self-defense drills and hit back at “vicious” critics Seoul and Washington. Pyongyang fired half a dozen short-range missiles into the sea off its east coast over the past week, followed by a volley of rockets from multiple launchers. The move violated UN sanctions banning any ballistic missile test by the Pyongyang. But in a statement, a Korean People’s Army spokesman said the tests were “ordinary military practice,” and said these did not have the “slightest impact” on regional peace or stability. The tests were largely seen as a display of military might to reflect the North’s anger over ongoing South Korea-US military exercises.

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