Map Shows North Korea’s Ballistic Missile Paths

North Korea launched a salvo of suspected ballistic missiles off its east coast on Monday in a resumption of tests that coincided with the arrival in the South by the top U.S. diplomat.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected three short-range missiles launched from North Korea between 7:44 a.m and 8:22 a.m. local time, according to the Yonhap news agency. The projectiles all landed in the Sea of Japan, which is known in both Koreas as the East Sea.

“We strongly condemn North Korea’s latest missile launch, which is a clear provocation that seriously threatens peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula,” Seoul’s military said a statement.

Pyongyang’s latest launches—its first known tests since firing a hypersonic warhead in mid-January—were also detected by Tokyo, which said the three missiles each traveled about 215 miles at an altitude of 30 miles before landing in the sea.

A Newsweek graphic based on data from Japan’s Defense Ministry recreated the reported trajectories of the three launches on March 18.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida condemned the ballistic missile tests, which he said “threaten the peace and security of our country, the region and the international community.”

Kishida called Kim Jong Un’s latest show of force “absolutely unacceptable,” saying it violated U.N. Security Council resolutions banning North Korean missile tests.

In a brief statement, the Hawaii-based U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said it was “consulting closely with our allies and partners,” and that the event “did not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory.”

“The United States condemns these launches and calls on the DPRK to refrain from any further destabilizing acts,” its statement said, referring to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the North’s formal name.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are running high after a record number of missile tests by the North last year. The United States and allied forces from the South recently concluded their largest annual war games, which drew protests from Kim’s regime for their pointed nature.

North Korea did not fire missiles during the U.S.-led Freedom Shield drills, but its state media released daily photographs of Kim personally leading field exercises including artillery firing, battle tank maneuvers and paratrooper training.

Experts say they expect Pyongyang to step up its military moves ahead of the U.S. elections in November in a bid to extract concessions from Washington. American officials believe Kim is likely to double-down on his strategic alignment with the Kremlin, which they say has already resulted in multiple weapons shipments to Russia for use in Ukraine.

Japan’s NHK public television said Pyongyang’s ballistic missile tests prompted a telephone call between Washington, Seoul and Tokyo as part of a new military hotline established last fall.

North Korea appeared to time the missile launches with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip to the South. Blinken landed in Seoul on Sunday to kick off the third Summit for Democracy.

Blinken was scheduled to travel to Manila on Monday to “underscore the United States’ ironclad commitment to the U.S.-Philippine alliance,” the State Department said in his public itinerary.

The North Korean Embassy in Beijing could not be reached for comment.