North Korea’s first ballistic missile test of 2026 saw several missiles launched from the Pyongyang area into the sea east of the peninsula, just days before South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s visit to China, prompting condemnation from Japan and the U.S. Indo‑Pacific Command, which stressed there was no immediate threat but warned the launches fuel regional instability. Analysts link the timing to a broader moment of global tension, noting that the tests coincided with U.S. forces’ capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in Caracas and suggesting Kim Jong Un aimed to warn Beijing against drifting closer to Seoul while signaling to Washington and other Western capitals that North Korea, “unlike Venezuela,” is prepared to answer pressure with aggressive military deterrence.