Brian McDonald
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw another test firing of a new multiple rocket launch system that the country plans to deploy to its forces starting this year, state media reported on Saturday, as part of its move to reinforce its weapons line against South Korean population centers.
North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said Friday’s test confirmed the “advantage and destructive power” of the 240-millimeter multiple rocket launcher and its guided projectiles. The agency said the system, which the North has already tested twice this year, will be deployed in combat units from 2024 to 2026 to replace older weapons.
North Korea has maintained a rapid pace in weapons testing in recent months as it expands its military capabilities, while diplomacy with the United States and South Korea remains stagnant. In March, Kim joined the troops training on a new model tank and drove one himself, state media reported, as its rivals, South Korea and the US, ended their annual military exercises.
Experts say Kim’s goal is to eventually pressure the United States to accept the idea of the North as a nuclear power and to negotiate economic and security concessions from a position of strength.
North Korea has focused on artillery systems in recent weeks. Its testing activities included launches of multiple 600mm rocket launchers in April, which state media described as a simulated nuclear counterattack against enemy targets.
The North this year also conducted several cruise missile tests and flight-tested what it described as an intermediate-range solid-fuel missile with hypersonic warhead capability. Experts say it was designed to hit remote US targets in the Pacific, including the military hub of Guam.
After Friday’s test, Kim issued instructions to maximize production of 240mm multiple rocket launchers and their guided projectiles, which he said would bring a “significant change” to the combat capabilities of his forces, the news agency said. North Korean.
Although North Korean artillery systems are designed to target South Korea’s capital area, where half of that country’s 51 million people live, South Korean military officials also suspect that the North’s recent tests are aimed at examining weapons that plans to export to Russia.
U.S. and South Korean officials have accused the North of providing artillery shells, missiles and other military equipment to Russia to help prolong its fighting in Ukraine.
In recent months, Kim has tried to increase the visibility of his ties with Moscow and Beijing, as he tries to break diplomatic isolation and form a united front against Washington.
