North Korea has fired a missile into the South, crossing the sea border between the two countries for the first time since the division of the peninsula.
The short-range ballistic missile landed about 60 kilometers (37 miles) from the southern city of Sokcho and triggered an airstrike alarm on Illungdo Island.
Later, South Korea fired three missiles in response to North Korea.
Seoul’s President Yoon Seok-yul called Pyongyang’s launch an “effective regional attack”.
South Korea’s military said Pyongyang fired at least 10 missiles “east and west” on Wednesday morning.
Later on Wednesday, South Korea’s military said it fired three air-to-surface missiles north of its maritime border in response to the North’s launch.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that it had previously announced that the military could not tolerate such provocative actions by North Korea and would respond firmly and firmly in close cooperation with South Korea and the United States.
He added that South Korean President Yoon Seok-yul had ordered an “immediate response” to the latest aggression.
The leaders of South Korea and Japan have convened national security meetings in response to North Korea’s latest firing.
Both countries recorded missile launches just before 09:00 (00:00 GMT) on Wednesday, including one that breached the Northern Limit Line – the de facto maritime border.
The missile landed 26 kilometers (16 miles) south of the demarcation line, 57 kilometers east of the South Korean city of Sokcho and 167 kilometers northwest of Ulyeongdo Island.
Kang Shin-chul, director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said it was “highly unusual and unacceptable” because it had fallen near “territorial waters south of the northern demarcation line for the first time” since the division of the peninsula. .
The missiles came a day after Pyongyang warned the US and South Korea to halt their joint military exercises around the peninsula this week.
On Tuesday, North Korea threatened to take “forceful” measures if the allies did not stop their drills.
North Korea’s test on Wednesday follows a flurry of missiles it fired last month, which it said were in response to joint drills by the US, South Korea and Japan. He described his response as a “creative” one for a nuclear attack on the South.
