N. Korea fires multiple artillery shots into sea: South Korea 

Seoul: North Korea has fired multiple artillery shells into the sea, South Korea's military said, in another show of force a day after leader Kim Jong Un vowed to boost the reclusive nation's military power. 

The Joint Chiefs of Staff gave no other details but added it had decided to issue a statement late in the evening as the shots were of a traditional type, with relatively short range and low altitude.

Firing of artillery shots comes as Kim on Saturday presented goals to boost the country's military power and defence research to protect North Korea's sovereign rights, as it concluded The Plenary Meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPF) held last week. 

According to South Korea's presidential office, during a national Security Council meeting convened to discuss the suspected launches, the officials expressed concern that North Korea is upgrading weapons systems that pose a direct threat the country and reaffirmed they would sternly deal with such North Korean efforts. 

As per officials, the suspected artillery launches were the latest in a spate of weapons tests by North Korea this year—in what foreign experts call an attempt to pressure its rivals Washington and Seoul to relax international sanctions against Pyongyang and make other concessions. 

It is pertinent to mention here that South Korean and U.S. officials recently stated that North Korea had almost completed preparations for its first nuclear test in about five years. 

In March 2022, North Korea test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the mainland U.S. in breach of a 2018 moratorium on big missile tests.