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| 2026-01-28 11:34:15
(2nd LD) N Korea-missile launch
(2nd LD) N. Korea test-fires large-caliber multiple rocket launcher with Kim in attendance
(ATTN: UPDATES with more info in paras 2-3, last 5 paras)
SEOUL, Jan. 28 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has test-fired an upgraded large-caliber multiple rocket launcher system (MRLS) to assess its effectiveness, overseen by leader Kim Jong-un, state media said Wednesday.
Kim called Tuesday's test of "great significance in improving the effectiveness of our strategic deterrent," saying the weapon system could be used for "specific attacks," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.
The weapons test came as North Korea is widely expected to convene its first ruling party congress in five years early next month.
The upcoming ninth congress "will clarify the next-stage plans for further bolstering up the country's nuclear deterrent," Kim was quoted as saying by the KCNA.
The previous day, South Korea's military said it detected multiple short-range ballistic missiles launched from north of Pyongyang toward the East Sea.
The KCNA quoted Kim as saying, "All the indexes have been improved to maximize its strike capability, and the mobility, intelligence and hitting accuracy of the rockets, in particular, have remarkably been upgraded."
He also described the weapon's "self-steered precisely guided flight system" as a major feature, touting "the steady improvement and uninterrupted evolution of our defense technology."
He said the relevant activities were aimed solely at raising the level of the country's "deterrent against a nuclear war."
"To build up the most reliable offensive capability and enforce the deterrence strategy based on it is the invariable line of our party's national defense policy," the KCNA also quoted him as saying.
Released photos showed Kim's daughter Ju-ae accompanying him to the test, along with Kim Jong-sik, first vice department director of the party's Central Committee, and Jang Chang-ha, chief of the Missile Administration.
The missile launch appears to be a show of muscle flexing as the North is expected to unveil five-year development plans for defense, the economy and other fields at the upcoming ninth congress, the first since the eighth in 2021.
The test also came as U.S. Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby visited South Korea to discuss security issues, including Seoul's push to build nuclear-powered submarines. Following the three-day trip to Seoul, he left for Japan the previous day.
Tuesday's test of four MRLS rockets employing new technology hit a target in waters 358.5 kilometers away from the point of launch, the KCNA said.
Experts suggested that the self-steered precisely guided flight system mentioned by Kim may indicate a new navigation system employed to help the weapon defy GPS jamming.
Shin Jong-woo, a researcher at the Korea Defense and Security Forum, said, "There's a possibility a military-grade GPS system provided by Russia may have been attached," adding that such systems are immune to jamming operations.
Lim Eul-chul, a professor at Kyungnam University's Institute for Far Eastern Studies, also suggested that Kim's description of the MRLS as applicable to "specific attacks" may indicate it could carry tactical nuclear weapons.
North Korea's multiple rocket launchers with 600-millimeter caliber have a maximum range of 400 km, putting all key military bases in the South within range.
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