Yoon’s office says N. Korea’s provocations will only deepen its isolation

The office of President Yoon Suk-yeol said Monday that North Korea’s repeated provocations will only deepen its isolation, after a North Korean vessel crossed the sea border and prompted an exchange of fire between the two Koreas.

The exchange took place early Monday morning after the merchant ship violated the Northern Limit Line, the de facto maritime border in the Yellow Sea, according to the South Korean military.

The North later claimed its artillery shots were in response to a South Korean warship’s violation of the western sea border.

The exchange added to already-high tensions on the Korean Peninsula following a string of ballistic missile tests by the North.

“North Korea’s continued provocations and claims that try to frame us as being in the wrong harm peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula but also in the international community,” a presidential official told reporters. “The more North Korea intensifies its threats, the deeper the isolation of the North Korean government and the more impoverished the North Korean people will become.”

South Korea is closely monitoring North Korea’s moves in coordination with the United States and maintaining a full readiness posture, the official added.