North Korea continues live-fire drills on west coast

The source said the North Korean military conducted live-fire drills north of South Korea's Yeonpyeong Island from around 4 p.m. on the same day. No shells fell into waters south of the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto border in the Yellow Sea between the two Koreas, and there were no casualties on the South Korean side.

Ongjin County, which administers the islands in the northwest of South Korea, issued an alert to border islands after detecting artillery fire from North Korea. In a message to residents on the islands, the Ongjin County government said the military on Yeonpyeong Island was controlling the situation but residents should avoid leaving their homes.

South Korea accused North Korea of ​​conducting live-fire drills off its southwestern coast for the third consecutive day, raising tensions along the maritime border between the two Koreas. North Korea has yet to make an official announcement about the drills.

Earlier, on January 5, North Korea fired about 200 artillery shells from the southwest coast. After that, the South Korean military on the frontline islands of Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong conducted live-fire drills in response. The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) confirmed that the country conducted live-fire drills in the naval artillery drill in the southwest sea, with 192 shells fired from 47 guns of different calibers between 9 and 11 a.m. on January 5.

KCNA asserted that the North Korean Navy’s live-fire drills did not have any indirect impact on South Korean islands. Pyongyang also warned of a stern response in proportion to South Korea’s military activities.

On January 6, South Korea continued to report that North Korea conducted live-fire drills for the second consecutive day, with about 60 artillery shells fired from the country's west coast. However, on January 7, KCNA quoted Ms. Kim Yo Jong, deputy head of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, as saying that the country's forces did not use artillery shells as reported by South Korea.

According to Ms. Kim Yo Jong, the country's forces detonated explosives that sounded like naval artillery shells to see how the South Korean military would react. The South Korean side has not yet commented on this information.

The moves came after the South Korean Army announced that it and the United States had conducted live-fire drills near the border with North Korea to boost joint combat readiness. The South Korean military also conducted a series of live-fire drills and other exercises this week. North Korea has protested the drills.