Buying a big stick: South Korea's military spending has North Korea worried

FILE PHOTO: South Korean marines take part in a U.S.-South Korea joint landing operation drill as part of the two countries' annual military training called Foal Eagle, in Pohang, South Korea, April 2, 2017. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji

SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea and North Korea have continued to pour resources into modernising their militaries despite a frenzy of diplomacy since 2018, data shows, creating a point of tension that has sharpened as talks have stalled.

Military buildups on both sides of the heavily fortified border between the two nations have come to the forefront with recent short-range missile launches by North Korea, perfecting an arsenal it says is necessary to defend against new South Korean weapons.