North Korea conducts live-fire drill with US submarine nearby, raising tensions
The North Korean army conducted a live-fire drill with massed artillery hours after a US submarine armed with cruise missiles docked at a South Korean base for naval exercises, further raising tensions in a volatile battle of nerves in north-east Asia.
Between 300 and 400 long-range artillery pieces, capable of hitting Seoul, took part in the drill on Tuesday, according to the Yonhap news agency quoting government officials.
The exercise, on the anniversary of the founding of the North Korean army, was a clear reminder that North Korea could destroy large swaths of the South Korean capital.
However, the North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-un, chose not to use the occasion to conduct the nation’s sixth nuclear test or launch a long-range missile – actions which the Trump administration said would trigger an unspecified US response.