(VOVworld) - The South Korean military carried out a live-fire exercise near the tensely-guarded inter-Korean Yellow Sea border Friday despite warnings from Pyongyang.

A South Korea’s navy ship fires missiles in a military drill (Photo: AFP)

The two-hour naval drill is part of the ongoing Hoguk (defense of nation) exercise that began last week and involves some 330,000 troops with the aim of bolstering its defense posture against growing North Korean threats.

Hours before the drill, North Korea issued a statement and criticized the South for "driving the situation to an extreme phase through provocations in the acute hotspot waters."

Tensions remain high near the de facto inter-Korean maritime border, known as the Northern Limit Line (NLL). The North does not recognize the line, demanding it be drawn further south, making the region a flashpoint of military confrontation between the two Koreas.