US Army soldiers prepare to cross the Hantan river at a training field in Yeoncheon, South Korea, near the border with DPRK, on Monday, March 10, 2025. (AP)

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) launched "multiple unidentified ballistic missiles" on Monday, according to South Korea's military, coinciding with the start of the annual joint military drill between Seoul and Washington, known as Freedom Shield.

"Our military has detected at around 13:50 (0450 GMT) multiple unidentified ballistic missiles fired from Hwanghae province into the West Sea," the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said, referring to the Yellow Sea.

The JCS emphasized that South Korea would "bolster surveillance and maintain a full readiness posture under close cooperation with the United States."

The US maintains tens of thousands of troops in South Korea, and the allies regularly conduct joint military exercises, which they claim are defensive. However, Pyongyang strongly opposes these drills, viewing them as rehearsals for invasion and frequently responding with its own weapons tests.

The Freedom Shield 2025 exercise, which began Monday, will include "live, virtual, and field-based training," according to a US statement. The drills are set to continue until March 20.

The DPRK’s Foreign Ministry on Monday labeled the Freedom Shield drills "an aggressive and confrontational war rehearsal."

The DPRK further condemned the latest drills as a "provocative act" and warned that they could trigger conflict. "This is a dangerous provocative act of leading the acute situation on the Korean peninsula, which may spark off a physical conflict between the two sides by means of an accidental single shot," its Foreign Ministry said, as quoted by the Korean Central News Agency.

DPRK threatens 'toughest response' to US, South Korea military drill

It is noteworthy that the DPRK had issued a warning to South Korea on Friday, threatening a harsh response if Seoul holds its joint military drills with Washington in the coming weeks.

South Korea and the United States will pay a "horrible" price, said a commentary on the Korean Central Agency (KCNA), emphasizing that "The enemy states will have to pay dearly for their foolish and reckless war drills, which will lead to a self-defensive, fair, and square, threatening, toughest response from North Korea."

"The Freedom Shield has repeatedly undergone its worst modifications, fully equipped with all malicious signs. This will soon bring a storm of aggravating the security situation to the Korean Peninsula," KCNA noted, adding that the military exercise is an infringement on the DPRK's sovereign rights and interests and risks regional instability.

KCNA went on to criticize the planned escalation of military drills between South Korea and the United States from 10 in 2024 to 16 in 2025, stressing that Pyongyang's enemies' "war frenzy" is moving toward a dangerous level.

The DPRK emphasized that it will be left with no choice but to "renew" its "strategic deterrence" if the United States continues its "military muscle-flexing", considering the counteraction inevitable.