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North Korea fires artillery near the border, warning "South"

North Korea fires artillery near the border, warning "South"

North Korea fired about 130 artillery rounds near its western and eastern maritime borders with South Korea, the latest military action that has contributed to worsening relations between the neighbors.

North Korea's military said the shooting was a warning against ongoing South Korean artillery drills near the internal border town of Cheorwon and blamed the South for escalating tensions.

South Korea's military said it communicated a verbal warning to North Korea over the firing and asked it to abide by the agreement. The South Korean and US militaries were closely monitoring North Korea's military activities while strengthening their readiness to respond to any "possible emergency," the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

The attacks came days after Washington, Seoul and Tokyo announced largely symbolic sanctions against some North Korean people and institutions accused of illegal activities to fund the country's nuclear weapons and missile programs.

North Korea has launched dozens of missiles as it ramped up its weapons demonstrations at a record pace this year, including multiple tests of an intercontinental ballistic missile system potentially capable of reaching deep into the US mainland and a ranged missile medium of action released over Japan.

Source: AP

 

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