ISTANBUL

North Korea on Saturday fired around 10 ballistic missiles toward the East Sea, South Korea's military said.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said that it detected the missiles launched from the Sunan area in North Korea at around 1.20 pm (0420GMT), according to the Seoul-based Yonhap News.

"Our military maintains a firm readiness posture while closely sharing North Korean ballistic missile information with the U.S. and Japanese sides amid a heightened surveillance posture against additional launches," said the military in a statement.

Earlier, the Japanese Defense Ministry also confirmed that North Korea fired a suspected ballistic missile, with the projectile appearing to have already fallen.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi instructed her government to gather information and ensure the safety of planes and ships, according to Kyodo News.

No damage in Japan has been reported so far as a result of the launch.

The latest launch comes as South Korea and the US conduct their annual springtime Freedom Shield military exercise.

North Korea last fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Jan. 27, and later said it was aimed at testing a renewed large-caliber multiple rocket launcher system.

Earlier in January, Pyongyang also launched its first multiple ballistic missiles this year toward the East Sea.