N. Korea Fires 100 Artillery Rounds into Maritime 'Buffer Zone'

North Korea fired 100 artillery rounds into a maritime "buffer zone" Wednesday. AFP
North Korea fired 100 artillery rounds into a maritime "buffer zone" Wednesday. AFP
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N. Korea Fires 100 Artillery Rounds into Maritime 'Buffer Zone'

North Korea fired 100 artillery rounds into a maritime "buffer zone" Wednesday. AFP
North Korea fired 100 artillery rounds into a maritime "buffer zone" Wednesday. AFP

North Korea fired 100 artillery rounds into a maritime "buffer zone" Wednesday, Seoul's military said, hours after Pyongyang launched a series of missile tests including one that landed near South Korean waters.

"North Korea fired around 100 artillery rounds from the Kosong area in Kangwon into the 'buffer zone' north of the Northern Limit Line," Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said, referring to the maritime border between the two Koreas.

Earlier, the military said it was the "first time since the peninsula was divided" at the end of Korean War hostilities in 1953 that a North Korean missile had landed so close to the South's territorial waters.

"President Yoon pointed out today that North Korea's provocation is an effective territorial invasion by a missile that crossed the Northern Limit Line for the first time since the division," his office said in a statement.

The missile closest to South Korea landed in waters just 57 kilometers east of the mainland, the military said.

Pyongyang's latest test-firing came as Seoul and Washington staged their largest-ever joint air drills, dubbed "Vigilant Storm", which involve hundreds of warplanes from both sides.



Iran Says IAEA Official to Visit for Talks, No Access to Nuclear Sites Planned

FILED - 23 June 2025, Austria, Vienna: The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi. Photo: Albert Otti/dpa
FILED - 23 June 2025, Austria, Vienna: The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi. Photo: Albert Otti/dpa
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Iran Says IAEA Official to Visit for Talks, No Access to Nuclear Sites Planned

FILED - 23 June 2025, Austria, Vienna: The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi. Photo: Albert Otti/dpa
FILED - 23 June 2025, Austria, Vienna: The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi. Photo: Albert Otti/dpa

A senior official from the UN nuclear watchdog will fly to Iran for talks on Monday, but no visit to nuclear sites is planned, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday.

Since Israel launched its first military strikes on Iran's nuclear sites during a 12-day war in June, inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have been unable to access Iran's facilities, despite IAEA chief Rafael Grossi stating that inspections remain his top priority.

Iran has accused the agency of effectively paving the way for the bombings by issuing a damning report on May 31, which led the IAEA's 35-nation Board of Governors to declare Iran in breach of its non-proliferation obligations.

Iran, which denies seeking nuclear weapons, said it remained committed to the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

"Negotiations with the IAEA will be held tomorrow to determine a framework for cooperation," Araghchi said on his Telegram account.

"A Deputy Director General of Grossi will come to Tehran tomorrow, while there are no plans to visit any nuclear sites until we reach a framework."

Last month, Iran enacted a law passed by parliament suspending cooperation with the IAEA. The law stipulates that any future inspection of Iran's nuclear sites by the IAEA needs approval by Tehran's Supreme National Security Council.