North Korea fired several ballistic missiles early Wednesday, its first weapons test in months, just days before world leaders — including US President Donald Trump — are due to arrive in South Korea for a summit.

Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the projectiles, believed to be short-range ballistic missiles, were launched around 8:10 a.m. local time from an area south of Pyongyang. The missiles flew roughly 350 kilometres (217 miles) before landing in the sea.

The launch marks North Korea’s first missile test since South Korean President Lee Jae-myung took office in June.

Trump said earlier this month he hopes to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un again, following their three summits during his first term. North Korean state media has also signaled openness to renewed talks, on the condition that Washington abandons what it called its “delusional” demand for Pyongyang’s denuclearisation.

Analysts say Wednesday’s launch was likely a political message timed ahead of Trump’s planned arrival in Seoul for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum on October 29.

“The launch is a response to Trump and his recent moves. Kim Jong Un is also asserting his regime’s presence during an event hosted by Seoul, as he’s done before.” said Park Won-gon, a professor at Ewha Womans University in Seoul.

Earlier this month, North Korea unveiled what it described as its “most powerful” intercontinental ballistic missile during a military parade attended by senior Russian and Chinese officials. Pyongyang claimed the missile’s strike range “knows no bounds.”

In September, Kim oversaw a solid-fuel engine test for long-range nuclear missiles; the ninth and final such test before a potential full launch.

Kim has said he has “fond memories” of his previous talks with Trump, adding that if the United States “truly wishes for peaceful coexistence” and gives up its fixation on denuclearisation, “there is no reason we cannot meet.”

North Korea remains under heavy UN sanctions over its nuclear and missile programmes and has shown no sign of relinquishing its arsenal. Instead, it has deepened cooperation with longtime partners China and Russia.