North Korea fires several ballistic missiles after the US and South
Korea began military drills
[March 10, 2025]
By KIM TONG-HYUNG and HYUNG-JIN KIM
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea fired several ballistic missiles
into the sea Monday, South Korea’s military said, hours after South
Korean and U.S. troops kicked off their large annual combined drills,
which the North views as an invasion rehearsal.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile firings, North
Korea’s fifth missile launch event this year, were detected from the
North’s southwestern Hwanghae province. It called the weapons
close-range but didn't say how far they flew. The military said South
Korea bolstered its surveillance posture and is closely coordinating
with the United States.
Earlier Monday, the South Korean and U.S. militaries began their annual
Freedom Shield command post exercise, their first major combined
training of President Donald Trump's second term. The allies have
already been engaging in diverse field training exercises in connection
with the Freedom Shield training.
North Korea’s Foreign Ministry warned Monday the latest training risks
triggering “physical conflict” on the Korean Peninsula. It called the
drills an “aggressive and confrontational war rehearsal" and reiterated
leader Kim Jong Un’s stated goals for a “radical growth” of his nuclear
force to counter what he claims as growing threats posed by the U.S. and
its Asian allies.
This year's training came after the South Korean and U.S. militaries
paused live-fire training while Seoul investigates how its fighter jets
mistakenly bombed a civilian area during a warm-up drill last week.
About 30 people were injured, two of them seriously, when two South
Korean KF-16 fighter jets mistakenly fired eight MK-82 bombs on a
civilian area in Pocheon, a town near the North Korean border, on
Thursday. The bombing occurred while South Korean and U.S. forces were
engaging in a live-fire drill ahead of the Freedom Shield exercise.
[to top of second column]
|
U.S. Army's armored vehicles prepare to cross the Hantan river at a
training field in Yeoncheon, South Korea, near the border with North
Korea, Monday, March 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
The initial assessment from the South Korean air force was that one
of the KF-16 pilots entered the wrong coordinates and failed to
visually verify the target before proceeding with the bombing. The
second pilot had the correct coordinates but focused only on
maintaining flight formation and dropped the bombs on the first
pilot’s instructions without recognizing the target was wrong,
according to the content of the latest briefing provided to The
Associated Press.
Gen. Lee Youngsu, chief of staff of the South Korean air force,
bowed and apologized Monday over the injuries and property damage
caused by the bombing, which he said “should have never happened and
must never happen again.”
Both the South Korean and U.S. militaries have halted all live-fire
exercises in South Korea following the mistake. South Korean
military officials say live-fire training will resume after they
complete the investigation of the bombing and form preventative
steps.
The South Korean air force earlier suspended the training flights of
all its planes too but lifted the steps on Monday, except aircraft
affiliated with the unit the two KF-16s belong to.
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
