North Korea fires 130 artillery shells near its "south" neighbour.

Pyongyang has conducted a record series of missile launches in recent weeks.

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North Korea fired a barrage of artillery shells towards a buffer sea zone yesterday, according to the army in Seoul, in the latest in a series of increasingly hostile missile launches by Pyongyang.

And the South Korean Army Chief of Staff stated in a statement that about 130 artillery shells were fired simultaneously from two separate locations, one on the eastern coast of North Korea, and the other on the western coast.

The Seoul army indicated that the barrage of missiles constituted a "flagrant violation" of the 2018 agreement between the northern and southern parts, which established a buffer zone with the aim of de-escalating tension.

He pointed out that he issued "several warnings" following the launches, without providing additional details.

He said, "Our army enhances its readiness in preparation for any emergency, while it tracks and monitors related developments in light of close cooperation between South Korea and the United States."

At a summit in Pyongyang in 2018, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his North Korean counterpart, Kim Jong Un, agreed to establish buffer zones along land and sea borders in an effort to reduce tensions.

But since the talks collapsed in 2019, Kim has shown greater adherence to his banned weapons programmes, while analysts see his breach of the buffer zone agreement as a test for South Korea.

Pyongyang has fired artillery shells at the buffer zone repeatedly in recent months.

It has also conducted a series of record missile launches in recent weeks, including one of an intercontinental ballistic missile last month, in the nuclear-armed country's most powerful test yet.

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