South Korean military says the action is a demonstration of the allies readiness to respond to North Korean ‘provocations’.
The United States and South Korea fired eight surface-to-surface missiles early on Monday off the east coast of South Korea after North Korea launched a barrage of short-range ballistic missiles on Sunday, a South Korean defence ministry official said.
The Yonhap news agency reported that South Korea’s military has demonstrated “the capability and readiness to carry out precision strikes” against the North Korean missile launch facility and the command and support station.
South Korean president Yoon Suk-yeol, who took office last month, has pledged to take a tougher line against the North and has agreed with U.S. President Joe Biden at their May summit in Seoul to upgrade joint military drills and their combined deterrence posture.
South Korea and the United States launched eight surface-to-surface missiles over 10 minutes starting at 4:45 am on Monday in response to the eight missiles fired by the North on Sunday, reported Yonhap. South Korea’s Defence Ministry confirmed eight Army Tactical Missile Systems (ATACMS) were fired.
In addition to the missile from the U.S., South Korea also fired seven missiles during the exercise. In a statement, the ROK-U.S. Alliance reaffirmed its commitment to peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and throughout the Indo-Pacific. The U.S. remains committed to the ROK’s defence, it said, using the initials of the country’s official name.
On Sunday, North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile into the sea off its east coast, probably its biggest test to date. It also came a day after South Korea and the United States ended joint military drills.
The South Korea-U.S. bilateral exercises involved an American aircraft carrier for the first time in more than four years.
In response to the latest missile tests by North Korea, Japan and the United States conducted a joint military exercise on Sunday.
North Korea, which is currently battling its first known outbreak of COVID-19, has criticized previous joint drills as an example of Washington’s continued “hostile policies” toward Pyongyang, despite its talk of diplomacy. For the first time in nearly five years, North Korea has conducted a flurry of missile launches this year, from hypersonic weapons to intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).
According to Yonhap, the North launched its volley on Sunday from four locations, including Sunan in Pyongyang, citing an unidentified source. Some analysts have suggested that North Korea is doing this as part of routine military drills by not reporting on missile launches in state media as it has in the past.
Seoul and Washington recently warned that North Korea appeared ready to resume nuclear weapons testing for the first time since 2017.
Earlier this month, North Korea launched three missiles, including what is believed to be its largest ICBM, the Hwasong-17, after Biden finished an Asia trip where he agreed on new measures to deter the nuclear-armed state.
South Korea and the United States fired missiles in response to those tests, which the two allies claim violate UN Security Council resolutions.
The United States called for more UN sanctions against North Korea over its ballistic missile launches last month, but China and Russia vetoed the proposal, publicly dividing the UN Security Council for the first time since 2006 when North Korea conducted its first nuclear test.
