[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] Is the Military Shooting Range, Once Hesitant, Opening Again?

South Korea and the United States are expected to strengthen live-fire training through joint exercises starting this year. It is also anticipated that firing ranges that had been closed or restricted due to the September 19 Inter-Korean Military Agreement will reopen.

On the 20th (local time), General Paul LaCamera, Commander of the United States Forces Korea, stated in a written response to the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee budget hearing, "We are working to reintroduce live training in the ROK-U.S. joint exercises." Although he explained that a significant portion of the training lacked budget support, this expressed an intention to expand joint exercises.

He particularly warned that "due to spatial constraints, opportunities for collective live-fire training have been limited," and that "the capabilities of the U.S. 7th Air Force and U.S. 8th Army to conduct such training on and off the Korean Peninsula will be degraded."

Commander of US Forces Korea: “Live Training and Live-Fire Exercises Will Be Expanded During ROK-U.S. Joint Exercises”
Possibility of Reopening Domestic Firing Ranges Blocked by Inter-Korean Military Agreement

The firing ranges in South Korea restricted by the September 19 Inter-Korean Military Agreement include Story Firing Range (Paju, Gyeonggi Province), Cheonmiri Firing Range (Yanggu County, Gangwon Province), Jeokgeori Firing Range (Yeoncheon County, Gyeonggi Province), Chilseong Firing Range (Hwacheon County, Gangwon Province), and Songjiho Firing Range (Goseong County, Gangwon Province). These are located within 5 km of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL).

The artillery units that trained at Story Firing Range relocated to Mugeon-ri Firing Range. Seven companies from Baengnyeongdo and Yeonpyeongdo have also used Mugeon-ri Firing Range. Cheonmiri Firing Range moved its targets beyond 5 km from the DMZ. Mines installed on the alternative target site were cleared to proceed with training. For Jeokgeori and Chilseong Firing Ranges, relocating the positions is feasible but requires cooperation with local residents.

Songjiho Firing Range on the East Coast is considered the only training ground capable of live-fire exercises for the next-generation 230mm Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) Cheonmu, which has a maximum range of 80 km. It is a site where the Army’s 8th Corps’ K-9 self-propelled howitzers, K-55A1 self-propelled howitzers, KH-179 towed howitzers, as well as the Navy’s 76mm naval guns, can conduct firing exercises. The military publicly conducted live-fire training at Songjiho Firing Range last year as well as in 2016 to deter North Korean provocations.

However, due to the September 19 Inter-Korean Military Agreement, the firing direction at Songjiho Firing Range had to be turned southward, toward Sokcho and areas south of it. The problem was that a 10-story hotel is located just 30 meters from the Songjiho position, preventing live-fire exercises.

Inside and outside the military, it is expected that firing ranges that were closed due to the September 19 Inter-Korean Military Agreement, such as the Machajin Anti-Aircraft Firing Range in Goseong, Gangwon Province, will reopen. Machajin Firing Range, considered the largest anti-aircraft firing range in the military, resumed operations in July last year after about four years. Some speculate that since ballistic missile launch training was conducted there before the September 19 Military Agreement, the site could be used for ballistic missile launches in response to high-intensity provocations by North Korea.