South Korean president, Yoon Suk-yeol has described as an act of “territorial encroachment” North Korea’s firing on Wednesday of 17 missiles into the sea.
The launch particularly angered President Yoon and other officials in Seoul because at least one of the missiles landed less than 60 km off the South Korean coast.
It was the first time a ballistic missile had landed near the South’s waters since the peninsula was divided in the mid-1940’s, a Reuters report said.
It also represents the most missiles fired by North Korea in a single day.
South Korea issued rare air raid warnings and launched its own missiles in response as tensions spiralled in the region.
The missile landed outside South Korea’s territorial waters, but south of the Northern Limit Line (NLL) – a disputed inter-Korean maritime border.
South Korean warplanes fired three air-to-ground missiles into the sea north across the NLL in response, the South’s military said.
An official in Seoul said the weapons used included an AGM-84H/K SLAM-ER, which is a US-made “stand-off” precision attack weapon that can fly for up to 270 km with a 360 kg warhead.
