Just another example of how the Kim regime plans to increase tensions during the U.S. Presidential election year:
The gun ports of the coastal artillery (circled in red) on a North Korean island near the Northern Limit Line, a de facto maritime border, remain open, in this photo taken from South Korea’s front-line island of Yeonpyeong on Jan. 7, 2023. (Yonhap)
North Korea fired some 90 artillery shots into waters off its western coast Sunday, South Korea’s military said, the latest in a series of drills near the tensely guarded western border.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said it detected the artillery firings into the maritime buffer zone north of Northern Limit Line, the de-facto maritime border in the Yellow Sea, and South Korea’s border island of Yeonpyeong from about 4 p.m. to 5:10 p.m.
The buffer zone was set under a 2018 inter-Korean military accord designed to reduce tensions along the border.
There was no damage to the South Korean military or civilians from the latest firing, a JCS official said, adding that the South Korean military does not plan to hold drills in response.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link.
The North Koreans are still trying to get the ROK to cancel the Inter-Korean military agreement signed under the previous Moon administration with their provocations:
North Korea fired some 130 artillery shells into eastern and western maritime “buffer zones” Monday, in what Seoul called a violation of a 2018 bilateral military agreement, amid the South Korea-U.S. live-fire drills in a border region.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said that it detected the artillery firings, thought to involve multiple rocket launchers, from Kumgang County in Kangwon Province and Jangsan Cape in South Hwanghae Province, from 2:59 p.m.
The shells splashed into the maritime buffer zones north of the Northern Limit Line (NLL), a de facto sea border, which were set under an inter-Korean military accord signed on Sept. 19, 2018, to reduce border tensions.
The JCS communicated warnings to the North multiple times, pointing out the violation of the military accord and calling for the immediate cessation of the provocation, the JCS said in a text message sent to reporters.
Yonhap
You can read more at the link, but if the ROK was to cancel the agreement the Kim regime could claim this as a “hostile act” as part of a justification for their long anticipated nuclear test.
Here is the latest provocation by North Korea as they likely try and build up tensions leading up towards their suspected nuclear test:
North Korea test-fired suspected artillery pieces into the sea on Sunday, South Korea’s military said, days after North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for greater defense capability to cope with outside threats.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that it detected several flight trajectories believed to be North Korean artillery on Sunday morning. It said South Korea maintains a firm military readiness in close coordination with the United States amid boosted surveillance on North Korea.
Associated Press
You can read more at the link.
North Korea’s missile launches may get the bigger headlines, but their robust artillery is the real danger to South Korea due to the 25 million people in the Seoul region living within artillery range.
It makes sense that this guy would get promoted considering the priority that the Kim regime has put on developing bigger and better rocket and missile systems:
Pyongyang has named an army general with expertise in artillery as its new military commander, North Korean state media reported, in a move that an analyst said could signal plans for the development of new weapons.
Pak Jong Chon was appointed the “chief of the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army,” KCNA said late Friday, adding that the decision was announced during a meeting attended by leader Kim Jong Un.
Pak succeeds Ri Yong Gil, an expert on military operations who has served in the position on two separate occasions since 2013.
His promotion from head of the Korean People’s Army’s Artillery Command may suggest a new military focus on weapons development, said Ahn Chan-il, a North Korean defector and researcher in Seoul.
The North was particularly threatened by the South’s acquisition of cutting-edge American F-35 stealth fighter jets — known for their ability to evade radar detection — earlier this year, Ahn told AFP.
“It is also notable that Pak accompanied Kim during the North’s test-firing of its new weapons,” he added. “With him as the North’s top military officer, it’s more likely that Pyongyang will prioritise artillery along with its new weapons system.”
AFP
