Fears about North Korean missiles during Pentagon chief’s visit

North Korea has declared a no-sail zone for its ships off its east coast, stoking concerns that Pyongyang will fire off more missiles while Defense Secretary Ashton Carter visits the region for a three-day summit. 

On Friday, the isolationist state launched four short-range missiles off its west coast, but it is not clear if the new warning to sea vessels means another round is in the offing.

{mosads}”There are no signs of peculiar movements,” South Korean Defense Ministry deputy spokesman Na Seung-yong told reporters Monday, according to Reuters.

Na said a no-sail warning had not been given to Seoul or the International Maritime Organization (IMO), a step Pyongyang has taken in the past.

Carter is set to start a three-day visit to South Korea on Thursday in a trip that will aim to reaffirm President Obama’s pivot to Asia.

The pivot, or rebalance, of shifting U.S. military forces away from Europe and the Middle East toward the Pacific has been a major strategic goal for the Obama administration.

The strategy is widely regarded as a means to counter China’s rapidly expanding military and a belligerent North Korea.

However, U.S. military operations against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program and Russia’s aggressive behavior toward Ukraine have overshadowed the effort.