Pyongyang slams US-South Korean manoeuvres

North Korea has warned that US-South Korean military exercises planned for this weekend will drag the region “to the brink of war.”

The US is sending naval vessels, headed by the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington, to the Yellow Sea for joint exercises with the South Korean navy.

The four-day manoeuvres, planned before this week’s attack, had already caused outrage in Pyongyang and angered the Chinese, a strong ally of the North.

Meanwhile, South Korea has reported sounds of artillery fire from inside North Korea and witnesses claim that smoke can be seen rising from inland areas.

Four people were killed during an artillery attack by the North on Tuesday marking one of the worst incidents between the two states since the end of the Korean war in 1953, which ended without a peace treaty being signed.

The bombardment led to the resignation of the South Korean defence minister.