The rockets were fired towards the Yellow Sea from the west of the Korean peninsula on Tuesday, an official from Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff told AFP.

The salvo was part of the North Korean military's regular wintertime exercises, Yonhap News Agency reported citing military officials.

North Korea has not commented on the launch, which came the same day it kicked off a key meeting of its ruling party's central committee.

That meeting, led by leader Kim Jong Un, will discuss key policy issues as well as plan for an upcoming party congress -- North Korea's first in four years.

The launch also comes a week after South Korea's dovish President Lee Jae Myung said he felt an apology was due to the North over his predecessor's alleged order to send drones and propaganda leaflets across the border.

Pyongyang has not responded to the overture from Lee, who has sought to mend fractured ties with the North.

North Korea last fired multiple artillery rockets last month, just hours before US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth visited the border separating it from the South.

It also fired similar weapons minutes before South Korean President Lee Jae Myung held talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in November.