Kim Jong-un observes test & orders mass production of ‘next-gen air defense system’
Kim Jong-un has ordered the mass-production and deployment of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system which the North Korean leader personally witnessed being test fired recently, state media reported.
Without revealing the date and location, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said Kim watched “the test of a new-type anti-aircraft guided weapon system” aimed at “detecting and striking different targets flying from any direction.”
The latest demonstration, organized by the Academy of National Defense Science, reportedly showed significant improvements since a similar test of the system in April 2016.
“Weapon system’s efficiency to detect and track targets has remarkably improved and its hitting accuracy has also increased, compared with those of last year,” the statement read.
A year after the initial test, Kim ordered the mass production of system in the country.
“This weapon system… should be mass-produced and deployed all over the country like forests so as to completely spoil the enemy’s wild dream of air supremacy,” KCNA quoted Kim as saying.
(LEAD) N.K. leader inspects test-fire of new anti-aircraft weapon https://t.co/8rBpL9slx9
— Yonhap News Agency (@YonhapNews) May 28, 2017
Pyongyang has conducted dozens of missile launches and tested two nuclear bombs since the start of last year in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions.
North Korea has also boasted about its plans to develop a missile capable of striking the United States and has ignored all calls to halt its weapons programs, insisting that it’s necessary to counter US aggression.
To mitigate the North Korean threat, Washington has deployed additional forces to the region and has placed the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system on the Korean Peninsula, despite strong objections from China.
The US has also been pressing Beijing to put pressure on North Korea, as China is Pyongyang’s sole economic lifeline.
The Chinese have repeatedly called for all sides to remain calm and level-headed during the North Korean stand-off and has urged the parties to “stop irritating each other.”
Moscow and Beijing have also been calling for a revival of the six-nation denuclearization talks which have been frozen since 2009.
