North Korea has fired around 130 artillery shells across the sea from its east and west coasts, according to the South Korean military. Some of the shells fell in the buffer zone near the sea border between the two countries, the military said today.
South Korea sees this as a violation of the 2018 inter-Korean agreement, which is intended to reduce tensions. The South Korean military has therefore sent several warnings north, the Ministry of Defense said in Seoul.
North Korea initially did not report the artillery salvos. North Korea’s military activities have been increasing for some time. A number of maneuvers with combat aircraft and artillery units were held and an unusually large number of missiles were tested – including ICBMs for the first time since 2017.
For their part, South Korea and the allied USA have increasingly held joint maneuvers this year, citing the deterrence of North Korea as the reason. It is also widely expected that the largely isolated North Korea will soon carry out another nuclear test.