North Korea on Tuesday test-fired an unidentified projectile(s) toward its east coast, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said, without further details.

Tuesday’s launch came less than a week after North Korea on Jan. 5 test-fired what it claimed to be a “hypersonic missile.”

This marks Pyongyang’s second weapons test this year.

The consecutive show of force is noteworthy given that Pyongyang on Jan.1 announced the country‘s policy direction for the new year as the outcome of the five-day fourth plenum.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un notably urged the country to further bolster the national defense capabilities “without delay,” citing the volatile security environment on the Korean peninsula as the main reason. 

By Ji Da-gyum (dagyumji@heraldcorp.com)