The Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul stated that Pyongyang fired approximately ten artillery shells from a multiple rocket launcher system on Monday afternoon towards the waters off the northern Yellow Sea. The agency added, according to the Korean “Yonhap” news agency, that analyzes are underway to assess the nature of this operation.
The launch occurred less than an hour before the arrival of US Defense Secretary “Pete Hegseth” to Camp “Bonifas”, which is located directly south of the Joint Security Area, in a joint visit with his South Korean counterpart “N. Jiu Baek”, to the tense border between the two countries.
In a separate context, the South Korean military reported that Pyongyang also fired ten other artillery shells on Saturday afternoon, the same day that witnessed the summit between South Korean President “Lee Jae-myung” and his Chinese counterpart “Xi Jinping” in the southeastern city of “Jeonju”, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed that “Our army is closely monitoring North Korea’s various activities under a firm joint defense posture between South Korea and the United States, and maintains its capabilities and status capable of responding strongly to any threat.”
Military sources indicated that launches using multiple rocket launchers are not considered a violation of UN Security Council resolutions, but the 240mm rocket launcher is capable of placing the capital “Seoul” and its surrounding areas within firing range.
These developments come just one month after North Korea fired several short-range ballistic missiles, about a week before US President “Donald Trump” visited South Korea to participate in the “APEC” summit.
