North Korea launched multiple ballistic missiles toward its eastern waters Sunday, according to South Korean officials.

President Lee Jae-myung of South Korea, a key US ally in East Asia, arrived in Beijing at noon on Sunday for his first China trip since taking office.

Sunday's missile launches by North Korea represent "a message to China to deter closer ties with South Korea and to counter China's stance on denuclearisation", said Lim Eul-chul, a professor at the I...