RSS
South Korea was on the lookout today for possible North Korean missile test launches after Pyongyang announced several new no-sail zones in its waters, Agence France-Presse reported (see GSN, Jan. 26).
The South's Joint Chiefs of Staff verified the validity of a news report that North Korea had announced five new no-sail zones in force from Sunday through today.
The North declared two no sail-zones last week along its western border with South Korea. Afterward, the Stalinist state initiated three days of artillery fire in the direction of waters claimed by Seoul.
"We are closely monitoring North Korea to see if it is conducting short-range missile tests or further artillery fire (in the new zones)," a Joint Chiefs spokesman said.
"There has been no unusual movement yet in the North," he added.
North Korea has ratcheted up tension with the South in recent weeks in what analysts believe is an attempt to pressure the international community into lifting U.N. sanctions and to increase its bargaining power ahead of a possible return to multilateral talks aimed at ending its nuclear weapons program (see related GSN story, today; Agence France-Presse/Google News, Feb. 2).