North Korea fired around a dozen short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea on Thursday, hours after South Korea renewed calls for dialogue to ease escalating border frictions. The launches originated from the Wonsan area on the North's east coast around 12:30 p.m. local time, with the projectiles traveling approximately 250 kilometers, according to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The missile barrage followed South Korea's proposal last week for military talks aimed at clarifying the Military Demarcation Line in the Demilitarized Zone and restoring communication channels. Those talks were suggested in response to a September 21 landmine explosion that injured three South Korean soldiers. Seoul has accused Pyongyang of planting the mines, a claim the North denies while blaming the South for fabricating the incident to justify its own border fortifications.

South Korean officials described the launches as a clear rebuff to the dialogue offer. The Presidential National Security Office convened an emergency meeting and condemned the tests as a serious violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions. Japan issued warnings to vessels in the area to watch for debris.

Tensions along the border have risen steadily this year amid reports of North Korean construction of fences and minefields, as well as sightings of additional artillery positions. Pyongyang has threatened to resume anti-South propaganda broadcasts and deploy new weapons systems along the frontier by the end of the month. The latest tests mark North Korea's 17th ballistic missile launch of the year and the first in more than two weeks.

Seoul has maintained heightened surveillance and shared information closely with the United States and Japan. Defense officials urged Pyongyang to return to negotiations rather than escalate provocations. The episode underscores the North's pattern of responding to diplomatic overtures with shows of force, further complicating efforts to reduce risks of accidental clashes along the heavily armed border.