North Korea Leader Kim Jong Un supervised the test-launch of 12 600mm multiple rocket launchers on Saturday, according to state media Korean Central News Agency. The weapons test took place shortly after the United States and South Korea began their annual large-scale military exercises on South Korean territory earlier this week.
During the drill, Kim said the launch was meant to demonstrate the country’s striking capability and send a warning to adversaries within a 420-kilometre range. He stated that the exercise would make enemies feel uneasy and help them understand the destructive potential of tactical nuclear weapons.
Images released by KCNA showed Kim observing the tests alongside his daughter and potential successor, Kim Ju Ae.
State media reported that the rockets accurately hit a target island in the East Sea, located roughly 364.4 kilometres away. According to the report, the strike achieved 100 percent accuracy, highlighting the effectiveness of the system.
Meanwhile, South Korea’s military said that North Korea fired more than 10 ballistic missiles toward waters off its east coast on Saturday. Officials in Seoul stated that the missiles were launched around 1:20 p.m. local time from an area near the capital Pyongyang and travelled approximately 350 kilometres.
Earlier this week, Kim Yo Jong, the sister of Kim Jong Un, criticised the joint military exercises conducted by the United States and South Korea. She described them as a provocative and aggressive war rehearsal that threatens regional stability. However, Seoul and Washington insist the drills are purely defensive and designed to strengthen readiness against potential threats from North Korea.
On Sunday, North Korea stated that it plans to continue conducting similar exercises regularly to maintain the country’s war deterrence capabilities.
Pyongyang has carried out numerous ballistic and cruise missile tests over the past two decades as it works to develop systems capable of delivering nuclear weapons. As a result, the country has faced multiple sanctions from the United Nations Security Council since 2006, though it has continued its weapons development despite the economic restrictions.
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