North Korea launches missiles amid US-South Korea military drills, 31 injured
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North Korea fired multiple ballistic missiles into the Yellow Sea on Monday, the same day that South Korea and the United States commenced their large-scale annual military exercise, Freedom Shield 2025.
According to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), the missiles were launched from North Korea’s Hwanghae province around 1:50 PM local time (0450 GMT). The JCS confirmed that the South Korean military has increased surveillance and remains in close coordination with US forces to ensure a strong defense posture.
The United States maintains a significant military presence in South Korea, with tens of thousands of troops stationed in the region. The two allies regularly conduct joint exercises, which they emphasise are defensive in nature. However, Pyongyang strongly opposes these drills, viewing them as preparations for an invasion.
Earlier in the day, North Korea’s foreign ministry condemned the Freedom Shield 2025 exercise as a "dangerous provocation", warning that heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula could lead to an armed conflict. The ministry, through state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), stated that the drills risk escalating the situation with “an accidental single shot.”
The Freedom Shield 2025 exercise, which began Monday and will run until March 20, involves a combination of live-action, virtual, and field-based training exercises, according to a US military statement.
This latest military activity follows an incident on March 6, when two South Korean Air Force fighter jets accidentally dropped eight bombs on a village during a joint drill with US forces. The incident resulted in injuries to 31 individuals, including civilians and military personnel.
Relations between North and South Korea remain highly strained, with Pyongyang conducting multiple ballistic missile tests last year in violation of UN sanctions. The two Koreas remain technically at war, as their 1950-1953 conflict ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty.
North Korea has continued to express its discontent with US military activities in the region. Just last week, Pyongyang denounced the visit of a US Navy aircraft carrier to the South Korean port of Busan, calling it a "political and military provocation."