<span style="color: #222222;">North Korean troops performed artillery drills near the disputed sea boundary with South Korea at the order of leader Kim Jong Un. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">The North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said that the firing happened when Kim inspected a military unit off the west coast. It was Kim's first known trip to a front-line military unit since he entered nuclear talks with the United States last year. </span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">The nuclear negotiations are largely at standstill now as North Korea steps up pressure on Washington to lift international sanctions and abandon hostile policies on the North.</span><br />'' <br />'' <span style="color: #222222;">South Korea's Defense Ministry expressed regret over the latest drills, saying they violated last year's inter-Korean deals aimed at lowering military animosities in border areas. </span><br />''  <br />