The South Korean government has assessed that North Korea’s artillery firing drill competition conducted on Monday does not appear to be a large-scale exercise.
A Unification Ministry official, speaking to reporters on Tuesday, noted that, unlike the two artillery training exercises held on May 29 and July 23, this training took place without the attendance of Kim Jong Un, the General Secretary of the Workers’ Party. The official added that, based on North Korean media reports, considering the quantity of weapons mobilized and the resources involved, it doesn’t seem to be a large-scale exercise.
In the past five years, there have been only two instances where Kim did not participate in artillery training exercises: November 7, 2021, and March 21, 2023. The recently disclosed 82mm (about 3.2 inches) mortar training also appears to be less intensive compared to typical artillery drills conducted by the North Korean military.
North Korea announced on Monday that it had conducted a firing competition for tactical artillery units under the Korean People’s Army’s combined units. Pak Jong-chon, Vice Chairman of the Party’s Central Military Commission, observed the artillery training competition in place of Kim, accompanied by Chief of General Staff Ri Yong-gil.
The official stated that the North Korean military’s strike training period typically runs from July to September, and added, that the public disclosure of this training appears to be a response to the upcoming U.S.-South Korea joint exercises.
The joint U.S.-South Korea exercise, Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS), is scheduled to begin on August 18. North Korea had previously condemned the U.S.-South Korea joint drills through a statement by Defense Minister No Kwang-chol, warning of potential military provocations.