North Korea tested nuclear-capable rocket launchers, state media reported yesterday, a day after Seoul detected the launch of about 10 ballistic missiles.
The test comes after South Korean and US forces launched their springtime military drills, due to run until Thursday.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Saturday oversaw the testing of the multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS), the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.
Photo: the Korean Central News Agency via AFP
The test involved 12 600mm-caliber ultra-precision multiple rocket launchers and two artillery companies, it said.
Kim said the drill gave Pyongyang’s enemies, within the 420km striking range, a sense of “uneasiness” and “a deep understanding of the destructive power of tactical nuclear weapon,” KCNA reported.
The rockets battered an island target in the Sea of Japan (known as the “East Sea” in South Korea and the “East Sea of Korea” in North Korea) more than 360 km away, KCNA said.
Kim praised the MRLS as a “very deadly yet attractive weapon,” KCNA reported.
Photos released by KCNA showed several rockets blasting off large vehicles into the air.
Another picture shows Kim and his daughter, Ju-ae, watching the launch from afar, flanked by a military official. Ju Ae has long been seen as next in line to rule the country, a perception stoked by a string of recent high-profile outings.
The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said it had detected multiple launches on Saturday from the North into the Sea of Japan.
Seoul’s presidential Blue House condemned the launches as a “provocation that violates United Nations Security Council resolutions” and urged Pyongyang to immediately stop such acts.
The launches came hours after South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said that US President Donald Trump thinks a meeting with Kim Jong-un would be “good.”
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