Ahn Gyu-back says military detected signs of N. Korea ballistic missile launch in advance; projectiles believed to be 600mm rockets

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said the military had detected signs of North Korea's short-range ballistic missile launches before they occurred and was fully prepared, as the North fired more than 10 short-range ballistic missiles from the Pyongyang area into the Donghae.

Appearing before the National Assembly's National Defense Committee on Thursday, Ahn said the missiles fired that day "are believed to be the 600mm rocket artillery that People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Yong-won mentioned this morning," adding that the military tracked the projectiles "from launch through to the point of disappearance."

He clarified that his earlier reference to the 600mm rocket artillery during the morning briefing was meant to convey that the military was proactively tracking the systems given the possibility of their forward deployment.

Earlier that morning, during the committee's business briefing, Ahn responded "yes" when Yoo asked whether it had been confirmed that North Korea was deploying 600mm rocket artillery, self-propelled howitzers and tactical missiles to forward areas near the Demilitarized Zone.

However, at the afternoon session, Ahn walked back the statement, saying his remark was intended to mean the military was proactively tracking the 600mm rocket artillery because of the possibility of forward deployment.

A Defense Ministry official said North Korea "is staging appearances as if it has already been operationally deployed, but no evidence of actual operational deployment has been detected so far" of the 600mm super-large rocket artillery known as the KN-25, adding that the weapon is assessed to be in preparation for such deployment. The KN-25 is a type of short-range ballistic missile that North Korea claims can carry the tactical nuclear warhead known as Hwasan-31.

The Defense Ministry reported to the committee Thursday that North Korea is pushing to deploy new weapons systems — including 240mm and 600mm rocket artillery, self-propelled howitzers and tactical missiles — to areas near the inter-Korean border.

In response, the military said it is reinforcing surveillance and firepower capabilities by fielding division-level counter-battery radars and Chunmoo multiple rocket launcher systems, establishing new integrated anti-drone systems in forward contact areas and building small unmanned aerial vehicle countermeasure systems in rear areas, while updating anticipated provocation targets to prepare for counter-fire operations.