North Korea has fired three ballistic missiles towards the Sea of Japan, according to the South Korean military.

The missiles were launched early on Tuesday local time from the western city of Hwangju and flew between 311 and 373 miles towards the Sea of Japan.

In a statement, South Korea said: "The ballistic missiles flight went from 500 kilometres to 600 kilometres, which is a distance far enough to strike all of South Korea including Busan."

Busan is a South Korean port city in the south.

"Our assessment is that it was done as a show of force," a South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff official said.


The US military said it had detected launches of two Scud missiles and one Rodong - a homemade missile based on Soviet era Scud technology.

China's foreign ministry has not commented on the launches but the Japanese government said in a statement they were "a breach of the UN Security Council resolution" and "extremely hazardous to shipping and aircraft and we have strongly protested".

These are not the first missiles North Korea has fired in recent months - intermediate-range missiles were tested in June and a submarine launched a missile earlier this month.

Just days ago, South Korea and the US announced they would deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence anti-missile system to defend the South from the North.

North Korea threatened to retaliate and the Chinese have also criticised the move, saying it will destabilise the region.

Around half of South Koreans are reportedly against the anti-missile system, with concerns including the possible destruction of crops and the undermining of sanctions against their northern neighbour.

Image: Security personnel try to protect South Korean Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-Ahn (obscured) from bottles and eggs thrown by residents in Seongju

Angry residents of Seongju, where the system is to be installed, even pelted South Korean Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn with bottles and eggs after the announcement.

But he told the South Korean parliament on Tuesday: "The threat to our national security is growing very quickly in a short period of time".