The United States criticized North Korea for firing an artillery barrage Monday into disputed inter-Korean waters, as tensions rose on the peninsula.
South Korean military officials said the North fired about 130 shells into the Yellow Sea after the South's navy ended a five-day naval exercise near its maritime border with the nuclear-armed North.
"It is not a helpful sign by North Korea and this is exactly the kind of behavior that we would like to see North Korea avoid," State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters.
Crowley said it was unclear what Pyongyang hoped to achieve by such "chest thumping" and said: "The firing of a very large number of rounds in the region is the last thing we want to see and is not the best way to reduce tension."
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Will North Korea's provocative actions, which is escalating the tension in the Korean Peninsula, benefit the North?
It will only be harmful to North Korea
South Korean military officials said the North fired about 130 shells into the Yellow Sea after the South's navy ended a five-day naval exercise near its maritime border with the nuclear-armed North.
"It is not a helpful sign by North Korea and this is exactly the kind of behavior that we would like to see North Korea avoid," State Department spokesman Philip Crowley told reporters.
Crowley said it was unclear what Pyongyang hoped to achieve by such "chest thumping" and said: "The firing of a very large number of rounds in the region is the last thing we want to see and is not the best way to reduce tension."
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Will North Korea's provocative actions, which is escalating the tension in the Korean Peninsula, benefit the North?
It will only be harmful to North Korea
