The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said on Sunday that South Korea will have to pay a "dear price" for sending propaganda leaflets across the border the previous day.
NATO and Europe are crying hoarse about North Korean troops being deployed in Russia. According to the Pentagon, about 10,000 North Korean troops are ready to be deployed in the war zone, most of whom are undergoing training in Russia. This would imply strength of about one division.
Guided by Kim, North Korea carried out a "crucial" missile test that set milestones in "perpetuating the absolute superiority" of the country's armed forces, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
Russia said on Monday it will continue its cooperation with North Korea but declined to comment on allegations that it plans to use North Korean soldiers in military operations against Ukraine.
The defence ministry's stance was echoed by the ruling People Power Party (PPP) on Sunday.
Seoul on Wednesday issued an air raid alert after North Korea fired short-range missiles that landed near South Korean waters for the first time.
The JCS said it detected the SRBM launch from the Sunan area in Pyongyang at 1.49 a.m., and that the missile flew some 700 km at an apogee of 50 km at a top speed of about Mach 6, reports Yonhap news Agency.
The US and South Korea launched four missiles off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula on Wednesday morning, in response to North Korea's provocative test launch of a ballistic missile over Japan.
North Korea on Tuesday fired an intermediate-range ballistic missile over Japan for the first time in five years, marking its fifth launch in 10 days. In response, the air forces of South Korea and the US conducted a strike drill Tuesday afternoon as a show of force.
South Korea and the United States fired four ground-to-ground missiles into the East Sea on Wednesday in joint drills, a day after North Korea's intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) launch, according to the South's military.
