A news broadcast on North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is shown on a Seoul, South Korea, street this month. Photo: Anthony Wallace/AFP via Getty Images
The militaries of North and South Korea exchanged warning shots along their disputed maritime border on Monday, according to officials from both countries.
Why it matters: The exchange along the western sea boundary comes in the wake of the North Korean military's recent spate of missile tests.
Driving the news: The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement it broadcast warnings and fired warning shots early Monday local time after a North Korean merchant ship crossed the Northern Limit Line — the de facto sea boundary drawn by the UN at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War.
- The North Korean military said it "fired 10 warning shots" in response, according to state media.
For the record: There were no immediate reports of fighting.