North Korea fired more than 200 artillery rounds into the Yellow Sea near two South Korean islands on the countries’ maritime border. The two barrages occurred around 9 and 11 a.m. Friday near Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong Islands.
The Joint Chiefs reported that the shells fell north of the Northern Limit Line, an informal maritime border separating the territories of the two countries. It warned North Korea the latter was “solely responsible for this escalating crisis” and urged the country “to stop immediately.”
South Korean marines stationed near the islands conducted a firing drill in response to North Korea’s artillery, the Ministry of National Defence reported on Friday.
The last time North Korea fired artillery shots towards the North’s boundary line was in November 2010. 12 years ago, the country shelled Yeonpyeong Island, killing two South Korean marines and two civilians.
Following the 2018 diplomatic summits between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and then-South Korean President Moon Jae-in on September 19, the two leaders signed an agreement to prevent “accidental military clashes” in the Yellow Sea.
Seoul partially suspended the agreement in November after Pyongyang successfully launched a reconnaissance satellite into orbit on November 21.
North Korea completely withdrew from the agreement on November 23, saying it was no longer bound by the agreement and that it was redeploying armed troops to outposts near the demilitarised zone, according to local media.
Friday’s artillery fire came two days after the South Korean Navy held its first naval gunnery drills of the year. More than a dozen South Korean warships entered waters off the country’s eastern, western and southern borders to conduct anti-ship live-fire drills, anti-submarine exercises and tactical manoeuvres, the South Korean Navy reported on Wednesday.
