North Korea has fired artillery shells off its eastern and western coasts, a day after South Korea kicked off annual defence drills aimed at boosting its ability to respond to Pyongyang\u2019s nuclear and missile threats.
\nAccording to international media, South Korea\u2019s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement early on Wednesday that North Korea fired about 100 shells off its west coast and 150 rounds off its east coast late on Tuesday.
\nIt 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.
\nThe 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.
\n\u201cWe strongly urge North Korea to immediately halt its actions,\u201d the JCS said in a statement.
\n\u201cNorth Korea\u2019s continued provocations are actions that undermine peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula and the international community,\u201d it added.
\nHours later, a spokesperson for the North Korean People\u2019s Army (KPA) said that the shots were designed to send a \u201cgrave warning\u201d 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.
\nSouth Korea\u2019s 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.
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