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North Korea’s Simulated Attack Strikes Land Closer Than Ever

North Korea released pictures confirming their missile launches last week, while reports indicate at least one landed close to South Korean waters.

North Korea has stepped up its rhetoric surrounding recent military drills between South Korea and the United States, claiming its own missile launches were based on simulating attacks on air bases and aircraft as well as a major city in South Korea. Claiming the retaliation was an attempt to “smash the enemies’ persistent war hysteria,” North Korea said it was fighting against a “dangerous war drill,” according to KCNA. Last week, as South Korea and the U.S. continued their air drills, North Korea fired a record number of missiles, including a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) that appears to have failed in flight. The drills between South Korea and the U.S. ended on Saturday. According to KCNA, a the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army warned in a statement that the North would continue to fire with “sustained, resolute and overwhelming practical military measures” in response to the U.S. and South Korea. It is unknown if Kim Jong Un was present to oversee the launches in person but debris believed to be part of a North Korean short-range ballistic missile was recovered by a South Korean ship, an official at South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday, according to Reuters, and is the first time to see such a missile land so close to South Korean waters.