Kim Jong-un Observes Tactical Guided Weapons with Daughter Kim Ju-ae, Emphasizes "Overwhelming Suppression"

North Korea Conducts Hwaseong Artillery Unit Firepower Drill on 9th at Western Front
Kim Jong Un: "Capability to Overwhelm Anytime"

North Korea conducted a firepower exercise targeting the South Korean Air Force base. Chairman Kim Jong-un, together with his daughter Kim Ju-ae, led the on-site guidance and instructed to "develop the capability to overwhelmingly respond and suppress." This is interpreted as a full-scale show of force ahead of the large-scale South Korea-U.S. joint exercises.

According to the Korean Central News Agency on the 10th, Chairman Kim supervised the firepower strike training of the Hwaseong artillery unit on the western front the previous day. At the training site, Kim emphasized, "We must maintain and continuously enhance a strong capability to overwhelmingly respond and suppress at any time, thereby thoroughly deterring the risk of military conflict on the Korean Peninsula."

North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong Un provided on-site guidance for the firepower assault training of the Hwaseong Artillery Unit, which is responsible for important operational missions on the western front, the Korean Central News Agency reported on the 10th. Kim's second daughter, Ju Ae, also accompanied him at the training site. At the training site, Chairman Kim emphasized, "We must thoroughly suppress the risk of military conflict on the Korean Peninsula by maintaining and continuously enhancing a powerful capability to respond overwhelmingly and subdue at any time."
[Image source=Yonhap News]

He also said, "The firepower strike squads must be strictly prepared to achieve maximum perfection in the two strategic missions: first, to deter war, and second, to seize the initiative in war, by creating various situations and continuously strengthening multifaceted realistic virtual training."

Earlier, the Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that North Korea fired several short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) toward the West Sea from the Nampo area the previous day. According to photos released by North Korea on the same day, it appears that at least six missiles, claimed by the North as 'tactical guided weapons,' were launched simultaneously.

North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un provided on-site guidance for the firepower assault training of the Hwaseong Artillery Unit, which is responsible for important operational missions on the western front, the Korean Central News Agency reported on the 10th. Kim's second daughter, Ju-ae, also accompanied him at the training site. At the training site, Chairman Kim emphasized, "We must thoroughly suppress the risk of military conflict on the Korean Peninsula by maintaining and continuously enhancing a powerful capability to respond overwhelmingly and subdue at any time."
[Image source=Yonhap News]

In particular, the news agency explained, "The firepower strike company, which has been honing its strike mission capability in a certain and meticulous combat readiness posture capable of suppressing any military provocation by the enemy at once, confidently demonstrated its real combat response capability by delivering a powerful simultaneous strike on the target area set in the West Sea of Korea, simulating key elements of the enemy's operational airfield." This revealed that the firepower exercise was a drill to strike the South Korean Air Force base in case of emergency.