SEOUL: North Korea Seoul said on Wednesday it had fired three short-range ballistic missiles, prompting warnings of a rare air strike on a South Korean island.
“North Korea fired three short-range ballistic missiles toward the South China Sea,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement, referring to the waters also known as the Sea of Japan.
The JCS said an air strike warning had been issued for Ulleungdo island, which was shown on national television and asked residents to “evacuate to the nearest underground shelter”.
The military said one of Pyongyang’s missiles landed in international waters south of the Northern Limit Line, the disputed maritime border between the two countries.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol called a meeting of the National Security Council about the launch, which analysts said was one of the most “aggressive and threatening” in years.
Japan also confirmed North Korea’s suspected ballistic missile launch, with coast guard warning ships to take note.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters: “As we see tensions rising on the Korean Peninsula, I would like to hold a meeting on national security as soon as possible.”
Pyongyang’s latest launch comes as Seoul and Washington hold their largest-ever joint military drill, dubbed “Storm of Vigilance,” involving hundreds of warplanes. of both sides.
Pak Jong ChonA senior North Korean official said the drills were provocative and provocative in nature, according to a report in state media on Wednesday.
Pak said the name of the exercise comes from Operation Desert Storm, the US-led military offensive into Iraq between 1990 and 1991 after it invaded Kuwait.
“If the United States and South Korea try to use their armed forces against (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) without fear, the special means of the armed forces of the DPRK will,” he said. carry out their strategic mission without delay”.
“The United States and South Korea will face a terrible case and pay the most terrible price in history.”
The military said one of the rockets on Wednesday landed in waters just 57 kilometers (35 miles) east of the South Korean mainland.
Cheong Seong-chang, a researcher at the Sejong Institute, told AFP: “In protest of the US-South Korea joint military exercises, Pyongyang appears to have staged the most aggressive and threatening armed demonstration against the South yet. since 2010”.
In March 2010, a North Korean submarine torpedoed the South Korean navy ship Cheonan, killing 46 sailors, including 16 on active duty.
In November of the same year, North Korea shelled an island bordering South Korea, killing two marines – both young conscripts.
It is a dangerous and volatile situation that could lead to armed conflict.
The test follows a recent series of missile launches, including what North Korea says are tactical nuclear exercises, which Washington and Seoul have repeatedly warned could culminate in a nuclear attack. another nuclear test – would be Pyongyang’s seventh.
The Storm Vigil air exercises were held 12 days before the amphibious naval exercises.
“As far as I can remember, North Korea has never taken such a provocation when South Korea and the US held joint military exercises,” Park Won-gon, a professor at Ewha University, told AFP. .
“Pyongyang seems to have completed its most powerful deterrent. This is a serious threat. North Korea also seems confident in its nuclear capabilities.”
“North Korea fired three short-range ballistic missiles toward the South China Sea,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement, referring to the waters also known as the Sea of Japan.
The JCS said an air strike warning had been issued for Ulleungdo island, which was shown on national television and asked residents to “evacuate to the nearest underground shelter”.
The military said one of Pyongyang’s missiles landed in international waters south of the Northern Limit Line, the disputed maritime border between the two countries.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol called a meeting of the National Security Council about the launch, which analysts said was one of the most “aggressive and threatening” in years.
Japan also confirmed North Korea’s suspected ballistic missile launch, with coast guard warning ships to take note.
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told reporters: “As we see tensions rising on the Korean Peninsula, I would like to hold a meeting on national security as soon as possible.”
Pyongyang’s latest launch comes as Seoul and Washington hold their largest-ever joint military drill, dubbed “Storm of Vigilance,” involving hundreds of warplanes. of both sides.
Pak Jong ChonA senior North Korean official said the drills were provocative and provocative in nature, according to a report in state media on Wednesday.
Pak said the name of the exercise comes from Operation Desert Storm, the US-led military offensive into Iraq between 1990 and 1991 after it invaded Kuwait.
“If the United States and South Korea try to use their armed forces against (Democratic People’s Republic of Korea) without fear, the special means of the armed forces of the DPRK will,” he said. carry out their strategic mission without delay”.
“The United States and South Korea will face a terrible case and pay the most terrible price in history.”
The military said one of the rockets on Wednesday landed in waters just 57 kilometers (35 miles) east of the South Korean mainland.
Cheong Seong-chang, a researcher at the Sejong Institute, told AFP: “In protest of the US-South Korea joint military exercises, Pyongyang appears to have staged the most aggressive and threatening armed demonstration against the South yet. since 2010”.
In March 2010, a North Korean submarine torpedoed the South Korean navy ship Cheonan, killing 46 sailors, including 16 on active duty.
In November of the same year, North Korea shelled an island bordering South Korea, killing two marines – both young conscripts.
It is a dangerous and volatile situation that could lead to armed conflict.
The test follows a recent series of missile launches, including what North Korea says are tactical nuclear exercises, which Washington and Seoul have repeatedly warned could culminate in a nuclear attack. another nuclear test – would be Pyongyang’s seventh.
The Storm Vigil air exercises were held 12 days before the amphibious naval exercises.
“As far as I can remember, North Korea has never taken such a provocation when South Korea and the US held joint military exercises,” Park Won-gon, a professor at Ewha University, told AFP. .
“Pyongyang seems to have completed its most powerful deterrent. This is a serious threat. North Korea also seems confident in its nuclear capabilities.”
