Kim Jong-un oversees tests of new multiple rocket launchers and tactical missiles

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un watches a major weapons test organized by defense research institutions on Thursday, KCNA reported Friday. [Yonhap]
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un watches a major weapons test organized by defense research institutions on Thursday, KCNA reported Friday. [Yonhap]

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un personally observed tests of new multiple rocket launchers, tactical ballistic missiles and long-range self-propelled artillery rounds on Thursday — the 76th anniversary of the Korean War outbreak — in a show of the North's expanding long-range precision strike capabilities targeting key facilities in South Korea.

The tests are believed to have involved an upgraded 240mm 24-tube multiple rocket launcher, extended-range rounds for a 155mm self-propelled howitzer capable of reaching Seoul, and a tactical ballistic missile fitted with a specialized warhead designed to destroy high-value targets such as airfields and ports.

According to the Rodong Sinmun on Friday, Kim oversaw the tests, which defense research institutions organized as part of a plan to modernize artillery and missile forces under the five-year national defense development goals.

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff detected the launch of more than 10 projectiles, including multiple rocket launchers, but concluded no ballistic missiles had been fired and issued no separate public notice.

A Joint Chiefs official said South Korean and US intelligence authorities were conducting a detailed analysis of the weapons' specifications. "Our military is closely monitoring North Korea's related activities and maintaining the capability and readiness to respond overwhelmingly to any provocation," the official said.

Shin Jong-woo, secretary general of the Korea Defense and Security Forum, raised the possibility that the Joint Chiefs had classified the launches as 240mm multiple rocket fire rather than short-range ballistic missiles, which would explain why no ballistic missile alert was issued.

In practice, North Korea has long blurred the line between its 600mm super-large multiple rocket launchers and short-range ballistic missiles by mixing their use and varying flight trajectories and speeds. Analysts have noted that distinguishing between short-range ballistic missiles and large-caliber rocket artillery at the detection stage is difficult.

The latest tests appear focused on improving the performance of strike systems capable of reaching South Korea.

Among the weapons tested, the extended-range 155mm artillery round — with a stated range of 65 kilometers — is believed to have been fired from a new self-propelled howitzer that Kim inspected at a "major munitions enterprise" in May, a weapon analysts have dubbed North Korea's answer to the K9 self-propelled howitzer. If Pyongyang's claim that it is developing a range exceeding 60 kilometers proves accurate, the system would put Seoul within striking distance.


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