North Korea fired several short-range ballistic missiles from the Pyongyang area toward the East Sea on Thursday as the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises neared their scheduled end on Friday. U.S. President Trump had directed the Pentagon to shorten the drills from a planned 10 days to five days, citing his relationship with Kim Jong-un and describing the exercises as an inappropriate signal to Pyongyang. The exact number of missiles remains disputed across reports, and prior Trump-Kim summits ended without a denuclearization agreement.