[Exclusive] Our Warship Also Removed All Gun Turret Covers [Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club]

6 Years After the 2018 Inter-Korean '9·19 Military Agreement'
North Korea's Concrete Guard Post Construction as a Countermeasure

The Navy has removed all gun covers from the warships deployed in the frontline area. It has been six years since our Navy covered the guns following the ‘September 19 Military Agreement’ between North and South Korea in 2018. Removing the gun covers is a measure to prepare for enemy provocations, indicating that military tensions have reached their peak.

On the afternoon of the 4th, naval vessels including the Eulji Mundeok (DDH-1, first on the right) of the Navy's 2nd Fleet participated in a maritime maneuver exercise held in the western waters of Taean, conducting anti-ship firing. The exercise, conducted simultaneously by the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Fleets located in the East, West, and South Seas, involved 13 ships including destroyers and frigates, as well as 4 aircraft, carrying out live-fire drills and tactical maneuvers. Photo by Joint Press Corps

On the 5th, a military official stated, “Since North Korea’s third launch of a military reconnaissance satellite last November, the September 19 Military Agreement has effectively been nullified, and all gun covers on warships near the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the West Sea have been removed to maintain a state of readiness.”

Under the September 19 Military Agreement in 2018, all warships had their guns covered. The agreement aimed to completely halt all hostile acts across all domains?land, sea, and air?to prevent armed conflict.

However, President Yoon Suk-yeol gave final approval last November in the UK to suspend part of the September 19 Military Agreement. This was a response to North Korea’s third military reconnaissance satellite launch the previous day. In retaliation, North Korea declared the nullification of the September 19 Agreement on the 23rd of that month and announced plans to forward-deploy stronger forces and military equipment near the Military Demarcation Line.

Since then, North Korea’s movements have accelerated. It is reported that the coastal artillery gun ports on North Korea’s Galdo and Jangjaedo, located just 5 km and 7 km from Yeonpyeong Island respectively, have all been opened. Galdo is equipped with 122mm coastal artillery and was visited by North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un in 2016. Jangjaedo has 76.2mm and 122mm coastal artillery and is a strategic stronghold for North Korea, visited by Chairman Kim more than four times. After the September 19 Military Agreement, the gun ports on Galdo and Jangjaedo had all been closed.

The frontline area is no different. About two months after North Korea began restoring frontline guard posts (GPs), it also constructed concrete posts. This is the first time that the construction of concrete posts has been identified by our military’s surveillance assets. The construction of concrete posts is interpreted as a sign that North Korea intends to fully resume the operation of destructible GPs. Additionally, our military’s surveillance assets captured scenes of North Korean forces planting landmines on the Gyeongui Line road, which is considered a symbol of inter-Korean exchange and cooperation. Military authorities interpret the planting of landmines on the Gyeongui Line road as an indication that North Korea intends to block and cease using that road in the future.