SEOUL: North Korea on Wednesday fired an artillery barrage into waters off its coast for the second day in a row, targeting a maritime “buffer zone” set up in 2018 to reduce tensions with the South.
Pyongyang has dramatically ramped up missile launches and military exercises in recent weeks, as Seoul and Washington say North Korean leader Kim Jong Un is close to conducting what would be his country’s seventh nuclear test.
Roughly 100 artillery shells were fired from South Hwanghae province into the West Sea around 12:30 p.m. (GMT 0330) Wednesday, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, calling it a “clear violation” of the 2018 agreement.
“The North’s continuing provocations not only undermine peace and security on the Korean peninsula but also for the international community. We strongly urge North Korea to immediately halt its actions,” the JCS said in a statement.
It said none of the shells landed in South Korean waters south of the buffer zone.
Pyongyang on Wednesday said the latest barrage was intended to counter a “military provocation” by the South Korean army along the border earlier in the day.
“Enemies shot over 10 shells of multiple rocket launchers in the frontline zone off the foremost line occupied by the 5th Army Corps of the KPA between around 8:27 to 9:40 Wednesday morning,” a spokesman for the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.
“The enemies’ successive military provocations in frontline areas must be stopped right now.”
The latest barrage marked the North’s second consecutive day of military provocation. It launched roughly 250 rounds into the maritime buffer zone off its east and west coasts on Tuesday.
Pyongyang earlier in the day said the Tuesday barrage was also in response to the “enemy’s war drill against the North” along the border “as a powerful military countermeasure.”
The North also fired artillery rounds into the military buffer zones last week.
North Korea fires artillery into buffer area, Seoul cries foul
https://arab.news/yrytr
North Korea fires artillery into buffer area, Seoul cries foul
- Pyongyang has dramatically ramped up missile launches and military exercises in recent weeks
- The latest barrage marked the North’s second consecutive day of military provocation
Indonesia eyes investment boost from UAE after leaders’ meeting
- Indonesia-UAE trade was worth $6.4b in 2025, up from $5b in 2024
- President Prabowo Subianto, MBZ also discussed increasing cooperation in renewable energy, tech, AI
JAKARTA: Indonesia is expecting more investments from the UAE, the Indonesian government said on Friday following talks between President Prabowo Subianto and his Emirati counterpart Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan.
Indonesia’s relations with the UAE grew under former President Joko Widodo, who in 2021 secured more than $46 billion investment commitment from the Gulf state.
Subianto visited Abu Dhabi earlier this week accompanied by Foreign Minister Sugiono, and Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Bahlil Lahadalia on a trip aimed at strengthening cooperation under the Indonesia-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.
“The meeting discussed cooperation to increase investment (and) strengthen bilateral cooperation. The UAE wants to increase its investment in Indonesia,” Cabinet Secretary Teddy Indra Wijaya said in a statement, without disclosing any amount.
Indonesia and the UAE signed the free trade deal in 2022, which came into force a year later. It was Jakarta’s first with a Gulf country and Abu Dhabi’s first with a Southeast Asian nation.
The Indonesia-UAE CEPA erases about 99 percent of existing tariffs and includes commitments to increase Indonesia’s services exports to the UAE by 6 percent while mutually recognizing each country’s halal certification.
Commerce between the two countries has seen a boost since then, with bilateral trade reaching more than $6.4 billion in 2025, according to Indonesian Trade Ministry data, showcasing an increase of nearly 27 percent from the previous year, when it was worth around $5 billion.
The Emirati state news agency WAM said the talks in Abu Dhabi also covered ways to increase cooperation in other sectors, including renewable energy, technology, artificial intelligence, sustainability, food security and culture.
“The (UAE) president noted the continuing progress of long-standing UAE-Indonesia relations, which are founded on mutual trust, respect and shared interests,” WAM said.
“He reaffirmed the UAE’s commitment to advancing its development and economic partnership with Indonesia for the benefit of both countries and their peoples.”
This year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and the UAE.
The UAE was Subianto’s last stop on a multi-nation trip, which included the US, the UK and Jordan.
