Seoul, Sep 12 (IANS): North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles toward the East Sea on Thursday, the South Korean military said, the first such launch since July 1.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the missiles fired off from the Pyongyang area at 7:10 a.m. It did not provide further details, such as how many missiles were fired and how far they flew, Yonhap news agency reported.

"Our military has ramped up monitoring and vigilance against additional launches, while closely sharing information related to North Korean ballistic missiles with the U.S. and Japanese authorities," the JCS said in a text message to reporters.

On July 1, the North fired two ballistic missiles. One of them was short-range, while the other failed and fell inland.

The latest launches came after North Korea said last week that the South and the US will have to pay a "dear price" for what it called "provocative war" drills after the two countries carried out the joint summertime exercise Ulchi Freedom Shield.

The North has long denounced joint military drills between South Korea and the US as rehearsals for an invasion and used them as a pretext for provocations. The allies have said their military exercises are defensive in nature.

Thursday's launch also came after North Korea reportedly resumed its trash balloon campaign last week after a near monthlong halt, sending balloons containing scrap paper and plastic bottles toward the South for five consecutive days.

North Korea has sent thousands of balloons carrying trash into the South since late May in retaliation against anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent across the border by North Korean defectors and activists in South Korea.