hankyoreh

By Ha Eo-young, staff reporter

North Korea fired 46 short-range rockets off the East Sea coast between Mar. 22 and 23.

The firing of such a large number of rockets over such a short period of time is being described as highly unusual. The North fired a total of 88 rounds of missiles and rockets between Feb. 21 - just before the launch of joint military exercises by South Korea and the US - and Mar. 23, which could be a “tit-for-tat” response to the joint exercises.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff issued a press release on Mar. 23 stating that North Korea had fired two barrages of short-range rockets - a total of 16 - toward the waters east of Wonsan on the East Sea coast between 12:52 and 2:31 am earlier that day.

“The range of the projectiles appears to be around 60 km,” the press release said, adding that the South Korean military “is maintaining a readiness posture and monitoring for the possibility of additional launches by North Korea.”

The day before, North Korea had fired three barrages totaling 30 rounds from the same location between 4 and 6:10 am.

The military believes the projectiles were FROGs, short-range vehicle-mounted surface-to-surface rockets introduced in North Korea during the 1960s. The model would be the same as the 25 rockets fired from Wonsan on Mar. 16.

Rockets are similar to missiles in having propellants, but lack the guidance systems used on missiles. According to the South Korean military, North Korea once again did not declare a navigation ban on the area where they fell into the sea.

The firing of 46 rockets in just two days is seen by many observers as highly unusual. Also unusual was the decision by the South Korean armed forces to disclose details about North Korea’s training with long-range artillery and rockets with a range under 200 km to the press. In the past, it has opted only to announce the firing of mid- to long-range missiles that might pose a threat to neighboring countries.

“The North Korean military appears to be holding training with the use of rockets to block landing operations as a response to the landing training that is included in the Foal Eagle exercises by the South Korean and US militaries,” said a military source on condition of anonymity.

On Feb. 21, North Korea fired four rounds from a new model of 300-millimeter multiple launch rocket system (MLRS). As of Mar. 23, it had fired a total of 88 rounds toward the East Sea, including 11 MLRS rounds, six missiles, and 71 rockets.

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