Tensions are once again ratcheting on the Korean peninsula, after North Korea fired over 200 artillery rounds off its West coast which landed near the South's Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong Islands on Friday.
Seoul condemned the "provocative act" while the North responded by saying the islands weren't in danger due to these drills. There have been no casualties, and the shells appear to have fallen harmlessly into the sea, but there are fears of a repeat of a 2010 incident which saw North Korean artillery fire killing four people on Yeonpyeong island.
South Korea's military responded by launching live-fire drills of its own in the same area. Drills were initiated on Yeonpyeong in particular by marines stationed there, with alerts telling civilians to stay sheltered during the exercises. South Korea's Joint Chiefs issued a statement warning the Kim Jong Un government that it is "solely responsible for this escalating crisis" and urged his regime "to stop immediately."
North Korea's artillery fire is in apparent response to more joint US-South Korean drills. These fresh live-fire exercises the day prior, Thursday, were also provocatively close to the border with North Korea.
The US Army said the focus is joint combat readiness, with South Korea's Capital Mechanized Infantry Division and the US Stryker Brigade Combat Team from the 2nd Infantry Division participating in the exercise.
It marked the allies' first joint training of the year, and importantly, it involved more than just ground fire and maneuvers, according to Yonhap:
The drill involved 110 weapons systems from South Korea and the U.S, including K1A2 tanks, A-19 combat aircraft, Stryker armored vehicles and artillery systems.
The exercise simulated A-10 combat aircraft's precision-guided strike on simulated targets, K1A2 tanks' firing and integrated tank-air defense shooting.
The presence of US tanks and combat aircraft near the border, engaged in live fire drills to boot, is especially alarming from Pyongyang's perspective.
Given last year involved increased tit-for-tat 'shows of force' from both sides, especially after the US docked a nuclear submarine in a South Korean port, this trend is expected to continue in 2024.
