South Korea holds live-fire drill on border islands

By Jun Sung-min Posted : February 26, 2026, 16:09 Updated : February 26, 2026, 16:54
Artillery is being fired during a live-fire drill on border islands near the Northern Limit Line (NLL), in this file photo from June 2025. Yonhap
SEOUL, February 26 (AJP) - This year's first maritime live-fire drill was conducted in waters off the West Sea, the Marine Corps said on Thursday.

The drill, which involved K9 self-propelled howitzers, took place on the northernmost islands of Baeknyeong and Yeonpyeong near the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto maritime border between the two Koreas.

Calling it a "routine, annual and defensive" drill, the Marine Corps said about 190 rounds were fired.

The maritime drill, typically held three to four times a year, was halted under the 2018 inter-Korean military pact as part of efforts to ease military tensions between the two Koreas.

But it resumed in June 2024 in response to a series of North Korean provocations including its bizarre campaign of sending trash-filled balloons toward the South. Four such drills were held last year.

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