The authorities of South Korea They accused this Friday North Korea start more than 200 artillery shells from the West Coast of the Korean peninsula towards the sea, a launch that raised all alarms in the neighboring country and prompted Seoul to evacuate the islands' population Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong. The South Korean armed forces said the launches took place between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. (local time) from Cape Jangsan and Deungsan on North Korea's southwest coast. Most residents have been placed in emergency shelters and the end date of the evacuation plan has not yet been determined.
The projectiles struck the sea within the northern boundary line, which acts as a de facto maritime border and was established under the 2018 inter-Korean military deal to ease tensions and from which Pyongyang decided to withdraw in November. However, at the moment No damage was reported in the area Despite the ever-increasing tension in the region, it is known that none of the projectiles fired crossed this line, reports the Reuters agency.
The island Yeonpyeong It was bombed by North Korean artillery in 2010, killing two Marines and two South Korean civilians. At least 18 people were injured and more than 100 buildings were damaged. At that time, the then Secretary General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-moon called it one of the “most serious incidents” since the Korean War.
“We seriously warn that the entire responsibility for such crisis situations lies with North Korea and strongly call for its immediate cessation,” said Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesman Col. Lee Sung Jun, South Korea's Yonhap News reported. He also described the act as “provocative” and said so Seoul will respond with military maneuvers. In fact, the South Korean army reported hours later that it had responded with live ammunition.
In this sense, he indicated that the army would take measures “taking into account coordination with the United States and recent military surveillance activities”, explaining that 400 projectiles – twice as many as those fired by North Korea – have already been fired towards the North were fired at the border line.
This is the first time that South Korean forces have conducted launches of this type since the agreement was signed in 2018, while North Korea has already conducted 16 such launches, the last of which was in December 2022 Defense Minister Shin Won Sik monitored the military maneuvers from Seoul and urged to be “prepared” to counter North Korea’s “reckless provocations.” “Our army must be equipped and show a retaliatory posture so that the enemy never tries to carry out such actions again, and we guarantee peace through force,” he said.
The 2018 agreement, signed on behalf of the former President Moon Jae InThe aim was to reduce tensions between the parties and avoid accidents. However, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has defined inter-Korean relations as “relations between two mutually hostile states” and called for increasing the country's capabilities to “suppress South Korean territory.”
South Korean intelligence, in turn, suggested in December that Pyongyang could launch various types of attacks in 2024, particularly in view of parliamentary elections scheduled for next April.
China's reaction
China today called for “calm” in Pyongyang and Seoul following the incident, claiming it was “closely monitoring” the crisis caused by the North Korean army's firing of hundreds of artillery shells in the region. “We are closely monitoring the developments and changes in the situation on the Korean peninsula. Recently, the confrontation between relevant parties has intensified.” and the situation on the peninsula remains tense,” said foreign spokesman Wang Wenbin at a press conference this Friday.
Wang pointed out that China, as a “peninsular neighbor,” has always been committed to “maintaining peace and stability” and advocates “dialogue and consultation” to solve problems. “We hope that all parties will maintain calm and restraint, refrain from taking actions that could exacerbate tensions, prevent further escalation of the situation and create conditions for the resumption of meaningful dialogue,” the spokesman added.
With information from Efe and Europa Press