North Korea fires multiple short-range missiles ahead of APEC

Soo-Hyang Choi, Bloomberg News on Oct 21, 2025

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SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea fired suspected short-range missiles toward the east just days before world leaders are set to gather in South Korea for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.

The projectiles was launched northeastward Wednesday morning, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a text message. Japanese media NTV said the missile appears to have fallen in waters east of the Korean Peninsula, citing a government official it did not identify. Japan’s broadcaster NHK said the projectile appeared to have had no impact on the country.

North Korea’s last known missile launch was in May, when it fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast. The launch comes just weeks after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un staged a military parade in Pyongyang that showcased the latest Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile and a day after Sanae Takaichi made history by becoming Japan’s first female prime minister.

It’s also the North’s first missile launch after the inauguration of South Korea’s liberal President Lee Jae Myung in June. While Lee has taken steps to ease tensions with Pyongyang, North Korea has largely rebuffed his efforts and maintained its stance that the South remains a hostile neighbor.

Yet Kim has kept the tone slightly different for President Donald Trump, saying that he has “good memories” of the U.S. leader and could talk with him again if Washington drops its denuclearization demands. Trump is also set to visit the region this month. South Korea’s Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said last week he believes there is a possibility of a meeting between Trump and Kim on the sidelines of the APEC gathering though there has been no indication that the two sides are arranging a summit.

Trump and Kim met three times during the U.S. leader’s first presidency, but those encounters failed to curb the development of Kim’s nuclear weapons program.

Kim has since aligned more closely with President Vladimir Putin, supporting his war against Ukraine, even standing shoulder to shoulder with the Russian leader and Chinese President Xi Jinping at a major military parade in Beijing last month.

Just days after joining the Beijing parade, Kim oversaw a ground test of a high-thrust solid-fuel engine designed for long-range missiles, signaling another step in North Korea’s push to further expand its nuclear arsenal.

Pyongyang already uses solid fuel in various short-range ballistic missiles and unveiled its first solid-fuel ICBM, the Hwasong-18, in 2023. A larger variant, the Hwasong-19, flew longer than any previous missile fired by the North in last year’s test. The new solid-fuel engine is slated for use in Hwasong-19 ICBMs and in the development of the next-generation Hwasong-20, North Korea’s state media earlier said.

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(With assistance from Jon Herskovitz, Seyoon Kim, Shinhye Kang and Ryotaro Nakamaru.)