Following a ceremony to present super-large caliber multiple rocket launchers (MRL) on Dec. 31, members of North Korea’s munitions sector and researchers at the Academy of Defense Sciences were given commendations and packages of food and daily necessities.
According to a source in the country on Jan. 10, the gifts were an expression of the great satisfaction felt by North Korean leader Kim Jong Un that the directives issued by the Central Military Commission last June were carried out so quickly. The packages included food items such as sweets, alcohol, and oil and goods such as shoes, sneakers, and various textiles.
Officials and managers who hold key positions in weapons production and development were also awarded citations and medals.
According to the source, a large amount of gifts – enough for all key personnel in the munitions industry – were delivered to relevant enterprises and organizations.
At the Third Enlarged Meeting of the Eighth Central Military Commission, held last June, a decision was reached to mass-produce short-range ballistic missiles in order to deploy them into service. The gifts were a commendation from Kim for carrying out these orders in just a few months, the source explained.
In fact, Kim praised the speedy pace of weapons production in a speech at the presentation ceremony for the MRL, saying “even while pressing ahead with existing production to achieve the key objectives of the revolution in defense industry proposed by the Eighth Central Military Commission, the participating enterprises working together achieved an astonishing record by assembling an additional MRL unit, and even two units, every two days.”
KIM PRAISES QUICK PRODUCTION OF AGRICULTURAL EQUIPMENT
Kim also expressed happiness that munitions factories throughout the country had met targets assigned to them in July to mass-produce tractors and other agricultural machinery, saying “in addition to munitions production, [they have] also carried out production [of equipment needed] for socialist economic construction.”
In his speech at the MRL presentation ceremony, Kim remarked that “[we] have produced as many as 5,000 agricultural machines that now operate in the fields of our collective farms. This strong support for the agricultural front is encouraging.”
Through these comments, Kim may have been trying to emphasize that munitions factories do not just make weapons, but also support the economic sector by mass-producing agricultural equipment.
However, contrary to the intentions of the authorities, some in North Korea are responding critically to Kim’s remarks.
One of Daily NK’s sources in the country remarked, “[Kim’s] saying that in all 13 provinces, direct-controlled cities, and special cities, nine out of 10 factories are munitions factories,” meaning that “the entire country is just one big armory.”
THE NEXT PHASE: DEVELOPING TACTICAL NUKES
According to Daily NK’s sources, North Korea has deployed the thirty 600mm MRL units that were presented on Dec. 31 to the Workers’ Party into frontline artillery regiments in the 1st, 2nd, 4th, and 5th Army Corps.
In short, the authorities are implementing the Workers’ Party decision to turn artillery into strategic weaponry through the deployment of short-range ballistic missiles to the front line and integrating these strategic forces into frontline units.
At present, however, North Korea does not appear to have miniaturized, tactical nuclear warheads that can be loaded onto short-range missiles.
Nevertheless, in his Dec. 31 speech at the presentation of the super-large caliber MRL, Kim stated, “The military equipment that our munitions workers have offered to the Workers’ Party and the Revolution puts all of South Korea in range and can even be equipped with tactical nuclear warheads. I envision that its status as a key offensive weapon in our country’s armed forces will allow it to fulfill its unique combat mission to overwhelmingly dominate our enemies.”
“[The military’s] plan was to finish developing and deploy the delivery system first, so now it needs to develop miniature, tactical nukes,” Daily NK’s source said, adding, “Now [the military] will be focused on developing these weapons.”
Translated by Nicholas Seltzer. Edited by Robert Lauler.
Please direct any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
