North Korea fires on South Korea – live coverage

4.30pm: That's it for today, thanks for reading and for the comments. Tania has just filed a story on today's events:

South Korea warned today that it will unleash "enormous retaliation" if North Korea launches fresh attacks against its territory.

North Korean troops bombarded Yeonpyeong, an island in disputed waters, with dozens of rounds of artillery earlier today, reportedly killing two South Korean soldiers and injuring around 20 people.

Seoul placed its military on its highest non-wartime alert level, scrambling F-16 fighter jets to the western sea and returning fire, officials said. It warned that the attack was a violation of the armistice that ended the Korean war in 1953.

The South Korean president, Lee Myung-bak, who convened an emergency security meeting shortly after the initial bombardment, said an "indiscriminate attack on civilians" could never be tolerated.

"Enormous retaliation should be made, to the extent that [North Korea] cannot make provocations again," he said.

The assault is one of the most serious in the decades since the war, given the involvement of civilians, although previous firefights around the disputed maritime border have resulted in a higher number of casualties.

In a short statement carried by the official KCNA news agency, the North said the South had fired first – presumably in reference to a live-fire drill being carried out as part of annual military exercises. It said it had repeatedly warned the South not to go ahead with the drill.

... Read more here.

2.40pm: The President of South Korea has said he believes "enormous retaliation is going to be necessary to make North Korea incapable of provoking us again".

Quoted by Yonhap news agency, Lee Myung-bak said: "Reckless attacks on South Korean civilians are not tolerable, especially when South Korea is providing North Korea with humanitarian aid."

"As for such attacks on civilians, a response beyond the rule of engagement is necessary.

"Our military should show this through action rather than an administrative response," he added.

Lee did not rule out the possibility of follow-up attacks.

"Given that North Korea maintains an offensive posture, I think the Army, the Navy and the Air Force should unite and retaliate against [the North's] provocation with multiple-fold firepower," Lee said.

"I think enormous retaliation is going to be necessary to make North Korea incapable of provoking us again."

2.00pm: My colleague Simon Rogers has used a 2007 report by the Congressional Research Service, to map out the 150 incidents which have occurred between North and South Korea since the Korea War in 1950.

You can read more on the Guardian's Datablog and see the incidents across North and South Korea here:

1.38pm: Justin McCurry reports from Osaka on Japan's reaction to this morning's developments – Japan being one of the countries involved in the stalled six-party talks.

The Japanese prime minister, Naoto Kan, has instructed government colleagues to be prepared "for any contingency" in the wake of North Korea's attack on the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong earlier today.

Kan said he had told his cabinet to "put all efforts into gathering information and ... to prepare to be able to respond firmly to any eventuality."

Japan's efforts will, for the time being, be limited to information gathering – in any case its "pacifist" constitution forbids it from mobilizing forces in response to an attack on an ally.

An escalation in hostilities on the Korean peninsula would, however, force Tokyo to make contingencies for a potential flood of refugees across the Sea of Japan.

Nevertheless Japan, which is still trying to establish the whereabouts of several of its nationals abducted by Pyongyang agents at the height of the cold war, considers itself near the top of North Korea's list of potential targets.

A foreign ministry official in Tokyo quoted by the Kyodo news agency described the shellings as "dangerous" and "provocative".

1.16pm: News of the exchange of fire has sent the South Korean currency tumbling, with the won currently down 3.5% on the US dollar.

The South Korean central bank, after an emergency meeting, says it planned to co-operate with the government to take measures to stabilise markets if necessary.

Many traders expect South Korea's financial markets to fall further when trading opens tomorrow.

However the drop against the dollar should be seen in the context of the dollar spiking in reaction to the news of the shelling – as my colleague Graeme Wearden, who knows much more about such matters, reported in our 11.02am post.

12.22pm: Mark Tran, Guardian colleague specialising in international news, has been mulling over the events of this morning. He says the key to rehabilitating North Korea into the international community lies with the US:

North Korea is a case of what Richard Nixon used to describe as the madman theory of politics, designed to keep opponents off balance. This is how Nixon described his approach – when he was trying to extricate the US from Vietnam – to his chief of staff Bob Hadelman.

Nixon said: "I call it the Madman Theory, Bob. I want the North Vietnamese to believe I've reached the point where I might do anything to stop the war. We'll just slip the word to them that, 'for God's sake, you know Nixon is obsessed about Communism. We can't restrain him when he's angry -- and he has his hand on the nuclear button' -- and Ho Chi Minh himself will be in Paris in two days begging for peace."

This time it's not Nixon acting crazy, it's the North Korean leadership. Yet there is some method behind the madness for North Korea. As Simon Tisdall wrote below, North Korea has consistently pursued a fundamental objective – a non-aggression pact with the US. But as far as the US is concerned, it has no intention with rewarding North Korea's "bad behaviour" with a peace treaty. Bill Clinton tried the carrot approach in the 1990s when he agreed to provide aid to Pyongyang in exchange for North Korea's commitment to stop its nuclear programme under the 1994 "agreed framework". That deal eventually broke down with both sides blaming each other.

When George Bush became president, his administration dismissed the Clinton approach as appeasement. But eventually he adopted a less confrontational approach not so different from Clinton's, only to see the North Koreans testing its first nuclear weapon in 2006. Since then it's been a roller-coaster, with signs of progress interspersed setbacks.

Meanwhile, South Korea under Lee Myung-bak, who became president in 2008, ditched his predecessor's conciliatory "sunshine policy" for a more hard-headed approach, reinforcing North Korea's sense of isolation. The key lies with the US, which can offer only what North Korea wants. But it's difficult for Barack Obama to show flexibility when the North Koreans behave so provocatively.

11.50am: Time for a bit of a recap after a tumultuous morning.

Two South Korean marines have died after North Korea fired shells at on the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong. South Korea's Joint Chief of Staff said 16 others were injured during the bombardment of the island, which is located near the countries' disputed western border.

South Korea returned fire and scrambled fighter jets in response to the attack. North Korea has not confirmed whether it suffered any losses. South Korea has accused its neighbour of an "intentional and planned attack", and said North Korea's action violated the 1953 armistice between the two countries.

North Korea has issued a robust response, accusing South Korea of firing first and saying it was provoked into taking action. South Korea was undertaking an annual military drill before North Korea fired. "Despite our repeated warnings, South Korea fired dozens of shells from 1pm ... and we've taken strong military action immediately," the North's official KCNA news agency said.

The international community has criticised North Korea, with the White House describing the attack as "belligerent". In the UK, foreign secretary William Hague said the attack was "unprovoked" and said the country "strongly condemns" it. A senior Russian Foreign Ministry official said North Korea's action was "absolutely unacceptable".

China, North Korea's only major ally, expressed "concern" over the initial reports, but called on both Koreas to "do more to contribute to peace". A spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry said it was now "imperative to resume six-party talks". North Korea quit talks with South Korea, the US, China, Russia and Japan in April last year.

11.23am: William Hague, the foreign secretary, has put out a statement condemning the attack on South Korea.

The UK strongly condemns North Korea's unprovoked attack on the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong Island. Such unprovoked attacks will only lead to further tensions on the Korean Peninsula. We strongly urge North Korea to refrain from such attacks and adhere to the Korean Armistice agreement. I welcome President Lee Myung-bak's call for restraint.

11.02am: My colleague Graeme Wearden reports that the military action alarmed the stockmarkets this morning:

With markets already nervous following the political crisis in Ireland, news of the shelling helped to send shares falling sharply when trading began. The FTSE fell by 66 points at one stage to 5614, down 1.1%, and there were similar falls in Spain, Portugal and Ireland. The dollar also spiked (traders typically run to the [perceived] safety of the greenback when bombs start to fall).

The South Korean Won was hit hard, falling 3.75% against the dollar, and other Asian currencies also fell.

There was also a significant leap in the cost of insuring South Korean government debt -- with its five-year credit default swap jumping by 18 basis points to 102bp. That still makes South Korean debt a very safe bet, though (the Irish CDS is more than five times higher).

A rumour travelled around the City this morning that North Korea's attack had been prompted by the death of Kim Jong-il – perhaps to prove to the world that the country was still in firm hands.

Neil Hume, the editor of FT Alphaville, tweeted the speculation: "@humenm: Warning broker RAW: Unconfirmed chat that kim jung-il has died. Prompts the shelling from north korea as being reported by newswires."

Most raw gossip from stockbrokers should treated extremely cautiously, of course.

10.43am: Tania Branigan has more on the events that preceded shells being fired – when South Korea was undertaking military drills close to Yeonpyeong.

The North Korean artillery attack followed a live-fire exercise by the South as part of its annual Hoguk military drills.

The Korea Herald reported that the North faxed a message to the South this morning saying it would not "just sit back" while the South carried out the exercise, citing military officials.

The Korea Times reported last week that the US had pulled out of the joint drill citing scheduling conflicts, but had said it would seek to rearrange the exercise.

10.36am: North Korea has accused South Korea of firing first, saying it was provoked into the military action, which has killed two soldiers in the South and set dozens of houses ablaze.

"Despite our repeated warnings, South Korea fired dozens of shells from 1pm ... and we've taken strong military action immediately," the North's official KCNA news agency said in a brief statement.

It did not elaborate whether North Korea had suffered any losses from the exchange of fire.

10.25am: South Korea's defence ministry has said North Korea's firing of artillery shells voilated the armistice between the two countries.

"This is an intentional and planned attack... and it is clearly in violation of the armistice," Lee Hong-ki, South Korea's defence ministry official, told reporters.

10.03am:

This map shows just how close the island of Yeonpyeon is to North and South Korea's disputed border.

9.58am: Reuters news agency is now also reporting that two South Korean marines have been killed.

Quoting South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, it says four more soldiers have been seriously injured on Yeonpyeong island.

9.50am: The White House has issued a statement describing North Korea's action as "belligerent" and reinforcing US support for South Korea:

The United States strongly condemns this attack and calls on North Korea to halt its belligerent action and to fully abide by the terms of the Armistice Agreement.

The United States is firmly committed to the defense of our ally, the Republic of Korea, and to the maintenance of regional peace and stability.

9.38am: Tweet from Yonhap News, the publicly funded South Korean news agency, on South Korea's initial diplomatic response:

(URGENT) South Korea indefinitely postpones Red Cross talks with North Korea slated for Thursday: official

9.34am: Another marine has died following North Korea's shelling of Yeonpyeong island, taking the number of soldiers killed to two, Yonhap news agency is reporting. More shortly.

9.31am: Potentially awkward moment in Guangzhou, China, this morning, where two South and North Korean archers stood side-by-side on the Asian Games podium as their countries fired shells at one another.

South Korea's Yun Ok-hee won gold in the women's individual archery competition, while Kwon Un Sil from North Korea took bronze, and stood beside Yun when they received their medals.

"Kwon, wearing a red team jacket, and Yun, with a multicolored team top, both stood with their hands behind their backs before the medals were presented," AP reports.

"Yun waved her national flag to a crowd of South Korean fans and held it up as all three medalists stood for photos."

9.23am: China, North Korea's only major ally, has expressed "concern" over the reports that North Korea has shelled a South Korean island, and called for six party talks on its nuclear aspirations to resume.

A spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Hong Lei, told a news conference both sides of the divided Korean peninsula should "do more to contribute to peace", and said it was imperative to return to six-party talks aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear weapons programme.

"We have heard reports and express our concern. The situation still needs to be confirmed," said Hong, responding to a question about the North Korean artillery attack.
"China hopes that the relevant parties will do more to contribute to peace and stability in the region," he added.

"It is imperative now to resume the six-party talks."

China is North Korea's only major ally, and its economic and diplomatic support have been important to shoring up its otherwise isolated neighbour, whose leader Kim Jong-il visited China twice this year to strengthen ties.

North Korea quit six-party talks with China, Japan, Russia, South Korea and the US in April last year. The country has indicated it would return to talks on the condition it first gets face to face talks with the US. The Obama administration has so largely resisted.

9.09am: This footage from CNN appears to show smoke rising from the Yeonpyeong, and buildings ablaze on the island:

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9.02am: Tania Branigan emails from Beijing:

The artillery attacks are a "totally justifiable act of self-defence" in response to the South's sea drills, an unofficial spokesman for North Korea has said, warning that nuclear war could follow "at any point" unless the exercises stop. Pyongyang has repeatedly issued such threats in the past.

"We repeatedly warned South Korea to stop its dangerous war games. If the South continues its dangerous behaviour, Seoul will be the next target. It will be a sea of fire. Nuclear war could start at any point," said Kim Myong-chol, executive director of the Centre for Korean-American Peace. He said it was fair to describe him as speaking on behalf of the North's government.

He added: "We have repeatedly warned the South to avoid endangering our territory on sea or air."

8.56am: In the comments below, seoulman writes expressively of the mood in South Korea:

I'm posting this from Seoul. Everyone is watching the news closely but there isn't any signs of panic. A few people, my girlfriend included have a sense of seeing this all before. I'm not trying to play it down, my arse went a bit when I heard the news but people are still going about there normal business.

8.47am: Reports are suggesting the shelling has now ceased, but fires are still burning on Yeonpyeong.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak has ordered officials to "sternly respond" to North Korea's action, but also called on officials to make sure that the "situation would not escalate," a presidential official told Associated Press.

Lee is holding a security meeting in a presidential situation room, the official said.

North Korea's actions "are illegal and a violation of the 1953 armistice agreement" that ended the Korean War, a Joint Chiefs of Staff official said.

He said South Korea responded to the shelling by firing a K-9 155mm self-propelled howitzer. However the JCS official declined to say whether North Korean territory was hit by the South Korean artillery.

The official said island residents are escaping to about 20 shelters in the island.

8.34am: Simon Tisdall, assistant editor of the Guardian and foreign affairs columnist, writes that North Korea is seeking "acceptance by the great powers":

The sudden flareup in hostilities will be attributed to several factors. But as far as North Korea is concerned, one motive above all guides its behaviour: it desire for international attention.

This has been largely lacking over the past year following the stalling of the six party talks, involving the two Koreas, the US, Japan, Russia and China, on the regime's rogue nuclear and missile programmes.

Pyongyang wants to hold face to face negotiations with the US alone but so far the Obama administration has largely resisted. The main difference is the agenda for any resumed talks, with Washington insistent that the aim must be the complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula.

Today's violence follows the sinking earlier this year of a South Korean naval vessel, which was blamed on the North - though it denies involvement. This too was seen by analysts as a bid by the regime to get the world's attention.

The North badly needs more international economic, development and food aid to bolster its chronically mismanaged economy. Its maverick leadership also seems to crave acceptance by the great powers. At present, paranoia reigns, amid constant claims tha the US is seeking regime change. This instability has been exacerbated by an apparent succession process in which the North Korean dictator, Kim Jong-il, is seeking to gradually transfer power to his youngest son.

But regional analysts suggest that notwithstanding any steps he takes now, a fight for power could erupt when the ailing Kim dies. That struggle may already be underway and could involve members of the powerful military involved in triggering today's fighting.

China, the North's only influential ally, has been urging the US to engage with the regime in order to defuse tensions. It has also held two summits with Kim this year. Chinese diplomats maintain Beijing has limited influence and are privately critical and alarmed, in equal measure, at the North's aggressive behaviour.

8.24am: This footage from YTN television, based in South Korea, appears to show images of of the impact of the shells on Yeonpyeong island:

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8.19am: More from Tania:

Yonhap has also reported that the government is considering pulling South Korean nationals out of the North following the exchange of fire.

We will decide whether we should evacuate them or not after looking into the safety of those at the Mount Kumgang resort and the Kaesong industrial park," the Unification Ministry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Mount Kumgang is a tourist resort, while Kaesong is a joint enterprise zone. But both have experienced their share of trouble in the past – in 2008, a Northern soldier shot dead a Southern tourist after she wandered into a restricted zone at the beauty spot, while the Kaesong complex has struggled amid increasing friction on the peninsula.

The official said officials would also reconsider plans to hold Red Cross talks with North Korea on Thursday in the South Korean border town of Munsan. Until last week, many had hoped that relations were thawing again after a long period of deterioration. The North was angered when President Lee took office in Seoul and adopted a tougher stance towards it than his predecessor, cutting off free-flowing aid.

8.10am: Dr Park Young-Ho, from the Korea Institute for National Unification, has said he believes the shelling is an attempt by North Korea to "turn this region into a conflict zone".

Although I can't be certain of the rationale behind North Korea's attacks yet, I see it as North Korea's intention to turn this region into a conflict zone so that it can bring the concerned parties to the discussion table.
By showing that it has nuclear capacity and by firing artillery shells today, I think it is trying to make a point that it is militarily capable and thus should not be lightly regarded. Ultimately, I think it is strategically seeking to tilt talks concerning the contested Northern Limit Line and the peace treaty towards its advantage.

7.54am: The Guardian's Tania Branigan reports:

Seoul is examining whether the artillery attack is related to its drills near the western sea border, a spokeswoman for the presidential Blue House said today, according to Yonhap.

Kim Hee-jung told reporters that officials were looking into the North's motive, adding: "Our Navy was conducting a maritime exercise near the western sea border today. North Korea has sent a letter of protest over the drill. We're examining a possible link between the protest and the artillery attack."

South Korea's president Lee Myung-bak has told senior officials that the government must "carefully manage the situation to prevent the escalation of the clash," another spokesperson said.

He is due to hold an emergency meeting of ministers at an underground bunker in Seoul shortly, his aide Park Jung-ha added.

7.44am: North Korea started firing on South Korean waters off the island of Yeonpyeong at around 2.34pm local time, some of them landing directly on the island, Yonhap news agency is reporting.

Col Lee Bung-woo, spokesman for South Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff told Yonhap the South had fired back some 80 rounds.

The military is on its highest peacetime alert, he said, adding that the South Korean air force has deployed fighter jets to the island.

7.36am: Yonhap News, the South Korean publicly funded news agency, is reporting that one South Korean soldier has been killed in the shelling. Yonhap quotes an unnamed official. We'll hopefully have more information soon.

7.30am: North Korea has fired dozens of rounds of artillery onto a populated South Korean island near their disputed western border, military officials have said.

The shells have set several buildings on fire, reportedly injuring two people, and have prompted South Korea to return fire and scramble fighter jets.

The skirmish came amid tension over North Korea's claim that it has a new uranium enrichment facility and just over a month after North Korean leader Kim Jong Il unveiled his youngest son Kim Jong Un as his heir apparent.

South Korea's YTN television has said two people were injured, several houses were on fire and shells are still falling on Yeonpyeong island. The station is broadcasting pictures of thick columns of black smoke rising from the island.

Yonhap news agency, quoting a military official, says four soldiers have been wounded. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak has ordered officials to make sure that the firing wouldn't escalate, according to Yonhap, quoting a presidential official. YTN said between 1,200 and 1,300 people live on the island.

A South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff official said dozens of rounds of artillery landed on the island and in the sea. The official says South Korea fired back. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of JCS rules, said South Korea's military is on alert. He had no other details, and could not confirm the reports of casualties.

Tensions between the two Koreas also remain tense after the sinking in March of a South Korean warship, the Cheonan, in which 46 sailors died. Seoul has blamed a North Korean torpedo, while Pyongyang has denied any responsibility.

The countries' western maritime boundary has long been a flash point between the two Koreas. The North does not recognize the border that was unilaterally drawn by the United Nations at the close of the 1950-53 Korean War.

North and South Korea have fought three bloody skirmishes near the maritime border in recent years, most recently in November 2009.