Two Koreas exchange warning shots near sea border amid tensions

SEOUL, Oct 24 (Reuters) – North and South Korea exchanged warning pictures off the west coast on Monday, accusing one another of breaching their maritime borders amid heightened army pressure.

The South’s Joint Chiefs of Employees (JCS) stated it broadcast warnings and fired warning pictures to see off a North Korean service provider vessel that crossed the Northern Restrict Line (NLL), the de facto sea boundary, at round 3:40 a.m. (1840 GMT Sunday).

The North’s army stated it fired 10 rocket artillery rounds after a South Korean navy ship violated the NLL and fired warning pictures “on the pretext of monitoring down an unidentified ship,” in line with state media.

“We ordered preliminary countermeasures to strongly expel the enemy warship,” a spokesperson for the Normal Employees of the North’s Korean Folks’s Military stated, in line with the official KCNA information company.

The JCS stated it had carried out a “regular operation” over the border intrusion, and referred to as the North’s transfer a violation of a 2018 bilateral army pact banning “hostile acts” within the border areas.

“We as soon as once more urge North Korea to instantly stop constant provocations and accusations which hurt the peace and stability of the Korean peninsula in addition to the worldwide group,” the JCS stated in an announcement.

The newest trade of fireside got here amid simmering tensions, with the North finishing up weapons exams at an unprecedented tempo this 12 months.

In latest weeks, North Korea launched short-range ballistic missiles and a whole lot of artillery rounds off its east and west coasts on a number of events in protest over the South’s army actions.

South Korea’s troops kicked off their annual Hoguk defence drills final week, designed to run till Oct. 28 and enhance their very own and mixed means with the US to counter the North’s nuclear and missile threats.

As a part of the programme, South Korean naval forces stated on Monday that they might stage four-day workout routines off the west coast, bringing collectively about 20 warships, together with their Aegis-equipped destroyer and U.S. property corresponding to Apache assault helicopters and A-10 strike plane.

Pyongyang has angrily reacted to the drills, calling them provocations and threatening countermeasures. Seoul and Washington say their workout routines are defensive and aimed toward deterring the North.

Reporting by Soo-hyang Choi and Hyonhee Shin; modifying by Diane Craft, Stephen Coates and Gerry Doyle

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