North Korea launched multiple ballistic missiles from its eastern Sinpo area on April 19, 2026, with each missile travelling approximately 140 kilometres before landing in waters off the country's east coast, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff. South Korea, which convened an emergency National Security Council meeting to condemn the tests, said it was assessing whether the missiles were fired from a submarine, a land-based launcher, or both; Japan also detected the launches and lodged a formal protest with Pyongyang, citing violations of UN Security Council resolutions that prohibit North Korea from conducting ballistic missile activities. The launches come amid escalating weapons activity by the Kim Jong Un government, which has recently tested cluster-bomb warheads and electromagnetic weapons, and whose leader declared in March that North Korea's status as a nuclear-armed state was irreversible.