North Korea stages largest ever artillery firing to mark military anniversary

North Korea has staged its largest-ever artillery firing drill to mark the anniversary of the founding of its military, according to reports.

South Korea's Yonhap news agency said the drill, celebrating 85 years since the North's army was created, took place near the eastern port city of Wonsan. Dictator Kim Jong-un was presumed to have taken part, it said.

South Korea's military said it was closely watching the North's troop movements around Wonsan and a separate report suggested between 300 and 400 artillery pieces were used in the test.

Seoul's joint chiefs of staff did not directly confirm Yonhap's report, which cited an unnamed government source.

North Korea's state media was defiant in a commentary marking the 85th anniversary of the foundation of the Korean People's Army, saying its military was prepared "to bring to closure the history of US scheming and nuclear blackmail".

"There is no limit to the strike power of the People's Army armed with our style of cutting-edge military equipment including various precision and miniaturised nuclear weapons and submarine-launched ballistic missiles," the official Rodong Sinmun newspaper said in a front-page editorial.

It is believed the North has a large number of artillery pieces trained permanently on Seoul.

Tuesday's drill came as US President Donald Trump criticised the Kim regime's "belligerence" in a phone call with Chinese premier Xi Jinping and said its actions were destabilising the Korean peninsula.

While Mr Xi asked Mr Trump for restraint, both leaders "reaffirmed the urgency of the threat", according to the White House.

Mr Trump has spoken out aggressively against North Korea in recent weeks, calling the country a "problem" that will be "taken care of".

He told United Nations Security Council ambassadors on Monday that the UN must be prepared to impose stronger sanctions on the country.

Additional reporting by agencies