DPRK shells inhabited S Korean island

[Lazar]

From CNN:

Seoul, South Korea (CNN) -- North Korea fired artillery toward its tense western sea border with South Korea on Tuesday, killing one South Korean marine, the South's Defense Ministry said.

Seventeen other soldiers were wounded, three seriously, defense officials said.

Two civilians were injured in the attack, the Yonhap news agency said.

At least 200 rounds of artillery hit an inhabited South Korean island in the Yellow Sea after the North started firing about 2:30 p.m. local time, Yonhap said.

South Korea's military responded with 80 rounds of artillery and deployed fighter jets to counter the fire, the report said.

The South Korean army also raised its alert condition, the report said.

Images of plumes of smoke were quickly broadcast on Yonhap television from the island of Yeonpyeong, with some homes on fire. It was not immediately clear how much damage the artillery had done. The island has a large military garrison.

The island has a total of about 1,300 residents, a fisherman who lives on the island told Yonhap.

Some residents started fleeing for the South Korean mainland, which is about 145 kilometers [90 miles] away. Other residents were seeking shelter at schools.

The South Korean government immediately called an emergency meeting of its security ministers, meeting in a bunker under the presidential residence in Seoul.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak ordered his ministers to take measures against an escalation of the situation, presidential spokeswoman Kim Hee-jung said, according to Yonhap.

"Take a stern response and carefully manage the situation from further escalating," the president said.

The United States quickly offered support.

"We are in close and continuing contact with our Korean allies," the White House said in a news release. "The United States strongly condemns this attack and calls on North Korea to halt its belligerent action and to fully abide by the terms of the Armistice Agreement."

"The United States is firmly committed to the defense of our ally, the Republic of Korea, and to the maintenance of regional peace and stability."

The North Korean fire came as the South's military conducted routine drills in waters off the island, which is about 10 kilometers [6 miles] from the North.

South Korea's annual Hoguk military exercises were to last nine days and include as many as 70,000 South Korean military personnel, according to the Stratfor global intelligence company.

The Yellow Sea has been a longstanding flashpoint between the two Koreas, but Tuesday's attack was an escalation in violence.

"Our navy was conducting a maritime exercise near the western sea border today. North Korea has sent a letter of protest over the drill. We're examining a possible link between the protest and the artillery attack," presidential spokeswoman Kim said, according to Yonhap.

The island is part of a small archipelago about 80 kilometers [49 miles] west of the South Korean port of Inchon, which serves Seoul, and is close to the tense Northern Limit Line, the maritime border between the two Koreas in the Yellow Sea.

A South Korean warship, the Cheonan was sunk in the area in March with the loss of 46 lives in a suspected North Korean torpedo attack.

North Korean artillery is extremely difficult to hit, because it is dug into coastal cliffs. Though the North has tested its artillery -- and tested anti-shipping missiles -- it has not fired artillery into South Korean territory in recent years.

One of North Korea's most potent threats is the hundreds of artillery barrels dug in along its demilitarized zone with South Korea and ranged on Seoul.

Yonhap television was covering the attack nonstop in South Korea, forgoing other news Tuesday. Meanwhile, state television in North Korea did not mention the attack.

I guess it was only a matter of time until they did something crazy.

[Lighthawk]

I guess it was only a matter of time until they did something crazy again.

Fixed it for you. Who wants to take bets on how this will turn out?

[Sionnach Glic]

I was just about to post this myself. This isn't the first time that the North and South have lobbed a few shells at one another. Though considering that this time NK claims to have nukes and just a few months ago torpedoed an SK warship....

For now, my money's on "nothing happens". There'll be sword rattling on both sides, and everything will be back to normal in a week. But the North is playing a very dangerous game here, taking such blatant actions against the South.

[Tyyr]

For now, my money's on "nothing happens". There'll be sword rattling on both sides, and everything will be back to normal in a week. But the North is playing a very dangerous game here, taking such blatant actions against the South.

That right there. No one on our side really wants a war on the Korean peninsula. N. Korea has one of the largest armies on the planet. It's not particularly well equipped but its still a lot of guys to have to kill. On top of that Seoul is in artillery range of the North and the North has nukes (not that they could fire them from artillery). Any war on the peninsula will be very very messy so it's unlikely either the South Koreans or us will do anything to precipitate one.

But, as we all know.



And I do like their army.

[Mikey]

I agree that there will be some strong words and very little else done about this, but I wonder what NK is hoping to accomplish. It's not so grandiose a statement like sinking a SK boat was, and in fact offers very little in the way of a declaration.

[Tsukiyumi]

And I do like their army.

That is a helluva nice army.

[Nutso]

How come this isn't an act of war?

[Tyyr]

Because an act of war is only what one side says it is. It could be, but only if SK wants it to be.

[BigJKU316]

How come this isn't an act of war?

It is. It is just that no one on this side wishes to declare war back over it.

Would make you feel all warm and fuzzy if you are in the SK military huh? They pretty much have declared open season on their own troops out of fear of the NK's. Now that is probably a rational strategic decision on their part but it still sucks a big one if you are one of the guys they ask to man a checkpoint along the border.

[Tyyr]

This is what the MLRS is designed to do. Park a few batteries near the border and when they do something stupid like this light them up. NK isn't going to start a war over one of their artillery batteries getting turned into stir-fry any more than SK would go to war over this.

[SolkaTruesilver]

This is what the MLRS is designed to do. Park a few batteries near the border and when they do something stupid like this light them up. NK isn't going to start a war over one of their artillery batteries getting turned into stir-fry any more than SK would go to war over this.

Even with that, SK has a lot more to lose than NK in an artillery turf war. Seoul is very close to the border, and they might lose a lot of infrastructure.

A lot more than NK, since NK just has no infrastructure.

[Sionnach Glic]

Technically, hasn't the war never ended?

That right there. No one on our side really wants a war on the Korean peninsula. N. Korea has one of the largest armies on the planet. It's not particularly well equipped but its still a lot of guys to have to kill. On top of that Seoul is in artillery range of the North and the North has nukes (not that they could fire them from artillery). Any war on the peninsula will be very very messy so it's unlikely either the South Koreans or us will do anything to precipitate one.

And that's pretty much the reason why both Koreas can get into these little slap-fights every now and again. North Korea may be run by a loony dictator, but KJI is well aware that any war would inevitably lead to him going the way of Saddam. Of course, at the same time he's well aware that before he loses he could level most of the northern half of SK. A war would probably kill quite a lot of Southern citizens in the opening few hours, just by using artillery alone. God alone knows how many NK citizens would be killed in the conflict. And things get incredibly messy if a nuke is used, regardless of how effective it is.

In short, war just isn't worth it.

I agree that there will be some strong words and very little else done about this, but I wonder what NK is hoping to accomplish. It's not so grandiose a statement like sinking a SK boat was, and in fact offers very little in the way of a declaration.

That's what I'm curious about, too. Sinking a warship? Yeah, you can see the political gains from doing it. Lobbing a few artillery shells across the border? Is KJI just afraid that people are starting to forget about him?

[Mikey]

This is what the MLRS is designed to do. Park a few batteries near the border and when they do something stupid like this light them up. NK isn't going to start a war over one of their artillery batteries getting turned into stir-fry any more than SK would go to war over this.

Yeah, but are we willing to commit (read: "be seen committing") anti-artillery materiel and personnel? Do we have that sort of hardware stationed over there?

Is KJI just afraid that people are starting to forget about him?

As goofy as it sounds to us, that's eminently possible.

[SolkaTruesilver]

I still think SK would win in a N/S showdown, but would pay a heavy price, civilian-infrastructure wise.

[Mikey]

I still think SK would win in a N/S showdown, but would pay a heavy price, civilian-infrastructure wise.

They'd win because (and only because) the entire Western world would come down on their side. If by "heavy price" you mean "Dresden circa 1945," then yeah.