Tensions rose earlier this week when South Korea accused North Korea of flying five drones across the border for the first time in five years and responded by sending its own drones toward the North.
North Korean hackers have stolen an estimated $1.2 billion in cryptocurrency and other virtual assets in the past five years, more than half of it this year alone, South Korea's spy agency says.
North Korean state media said that Kim Jong Un had observed the launch of its new type of intercontinental ballistic missile with his wife Ri Sol Ju, their "beloved daughter" and other officials.
North Korea launched four ballistic missiles into the sea, as the U.S sent two bombers over South Korea in a dueling display of military might that underscored rising tensions in the region.
North Korea's recent barrage of missile launches were the simulated use of its tactical battlefield nuclear weapons to "wipe out" potential South Korean and U.S. targets, state media reported Monday
North Korea warned that the U.S. redeployment of an aircraft carrier near the Korean Peninsula is causing a "considerably huge negative splash" in regional security.
A malfunctioning South Korean ballistic missile blew up as it plowed into the ground Wednesday during a live-fire drill, panicking and confusing residents of the coastal city of Gangneung.
South Korea called an emergency National Security Council meeting where members denounced the launch as a clear violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said his country will never abandon the nuclear weapons it needs to counter the United States, which he accused of pushing to weaken the North's defenses.
The north's stockpile of bullets and artillery rounds are compatible with Russia's weapons, but may be lower-quality. Transferring anything more powerful would get much more complicated.
While Washington and Seoul describe their exercises as defensive, North Korea portrays them as invasion rehearsals and has used them to justify its nuclear weapons and missiles development.
The North's official news agency also reported that Kim's sister blamed the COVID outbreak on leaflets flown from across the border from South Korea, while warning of deadly retaliation.
North Korea on Sunday slammed the United States, South Korea and Japan for pushing to boost their trilateral military cooperation, warning it would reinforce its military capability.
