The South Korean military has dispatched a special Marine task force unit to the five Northwest islands near the inter-Korean maritime border amid heightened inter-Korean tension, following the North’s latest missile provocation.  
 
It is the first military response by the South since the North’s test-fire of a new intermediate-range ballistic missile, Pukguksong-2, on Sunday.
 
A landing craft, air cushioned(LCAC) vehicle carrying around 100 members of the quick maneuver forces of the South Korean Marine Corps arrived on the shore of Yeonpyeong Island on Tuesday morning.
 
They are part of the 500 quick Marine maneuver forces operatives confirmed to have been dispatched to five Northwest islands near the Northern Limit Line(NLL), including Yeonpyeong Island and Baegnyeong Island.
 
Created in Pohang in North Gyeongsang Province last year, the quick maneuver forces is tasked with infiltrating the North via LCAC vehicles and helicopters in case of contingency, destroying the North’s nuclear facilities and striking the North’s command centers. 

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