N Korea fires artillery shells in ‘grave warning’ to Seoul

North Korea fires 350 rounds off its east and west coasts near border with South Korea after Seoul kicks off defense drills.

North Korea has fired hundreds of artillery shells off its eastern and western coasts as South Korea carried out annual defense drills aimed at boosting its ability to respond to Pyongyang’s nuclear and missile threats.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said that North Korea fired some 250 shells on its eastern and western coasts late on Tuesday and launched an additional 100 rounds, starting at around midday on Wednesday.

It said the shells did not land in South Korean territorial waters but fell inside maritime buffer zones the two Koreas established under a 2018 inter-Korean agreement aimed at reducing front-line animosities.

The incident marked the second time North Korea has fired shells into the buffer zones since last Friday when it shot hundreds of shells there in its most significant direct violation of the 2018 agreement.

“We strongly urge North Korea to immediately halt its actions,” the JCS said in a statement.

“North Korea’s continued provocations are actions that undermine peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula and the international community,” it added.

A spokesperson for the North Korean People’s Army (KPA) said on Wednesday that the shots were designed to send a “grave warning” to South Korea in response to its own artillery training that took place earlier on Tuesday in an eastern border region. Seoul did not immediately confirm if it had conducted any such firings.

South Korea’s Hoguk drills, which are due to end on Saturday, are the latest in a series of military exercises it has conducted in recent weeks, including joint activities with the United States and Japan.

Agencies