North Korea fires artillery shells near maritime border

SEOUL - North Korean forces fired over 100 artillery rounds into the Yellow Sea near the disputed border with the South Monday, a media report said.

About 110 rounds were fired on North Korea’s side of the maritime border, the Yonhap news agency reported citing South Korean military officials.

The firing followed five days of South Korean naval exercises near the sea border. North Korea had threatened “strong physical retaliations” to the manoeuvres.

The South carried out the exercises in response to the sinking of one of its warships in March in which 46 sailors died. South Korea blamed its Stalinist neighbour for sinking the corvette, an accusation the North rejected.

The maritime border was set by the UN at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War but North Korea does not recognise it.

Naval forces from South and North Korea clashed in the area in 1999, 2002 and 2009.