S.Korea, US inaugurate combined military division

South Korea and the United States have kicked off a combined military division to bolster their joint combat readiness against North Korean threats.

The division's inaugural ceremony took place on Wednesday at Camp Red Cloud in Uijeongbu, north of Seoul, attended by South Korea's 3rd Army commander Gen. Kim Hyun-jip, U.S. Major Gen. Theodore Martin, commanding general of the newly launched division, and other high-ranking military officers from both countries.

The division consists of a brigade from the South Korean Army and the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division, with each entity carrying out normal duties in its assigned area during peacetime.

Meanwhile, President Park Geun-Hye on Wednesday observed the successful test-firing of a new home-developed ballistic missile in the western coastal county of Taean. The Defense Ministry said the new missile has a fire range of 500 kilometers and can hit anywhere in North Korea.