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SEOUL: South Korea's military on Thursday fired thousands of shells during a live-fire artillery drill near the tense Yellow Sea border with North Korea, the defence ministry said.
Troops fired more than 5,000 rounds from K-9 self-propelled guns, Vulcan cannon and other artillery during the two-hour morning exercise, a ministry spokesman told AFP.
North Korea used a similar live-fire drill last November as the pretext for its bombardment of Yeonpyeong island near the border, which killed two South Korean Marines and two civilians.
“This is a regular drill aimed at strengthening military preparedness in our seas and improving the Marines' shooting skills,” Yonhap news agency quoted one military official as saying.
Thousands of Marines guard islands near the disputed border, which was the scene of deadly naval clashes in 1999, 2002 and November 2009.
