North Korea tests mass-attack tactics combining drones, missiles and artillery
Photo: This tactic could pose a challenge to US and allied air defenses (Getty Images)
North Korea has begun practicing the tactics of mass attacks used in Russia’s war against Ukraine and in the Middle East. The DPRK is practicing the combination of drones and conventional weapons, reports The Wall Street Journal.
This month, the DPRK conducted drills for the first time, with drones, missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, rocket launchers, and long-range artillery being used to destroy a target.
State media said that the drills were intended to hone the interaction of different weapons systems through concentrated fire, which is capable of destroying the enemy's armed forces organizationally and structurally.
Then, on September 20, Pyongyang announced the launch of two allegedly hypersonic missiles. Such weapons are designed to fly at speeds at least five times faster than the speed of sound, and are also capable of overcoming air defense systems due to their high speed and can change their flight direction.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observed the tests of these missiles, after which he said that the missiles represented state-of-the-art technology.
Also on Thursday, North Korean media reported test firing of shells from a modernized 240-mm multiple rocket launcher with unmanned point guidance.
The use of such tactics could challenge the air defenses of the United States and its allies, the WSJ writes.
The media added that recently Kim Jong Un has been paying more attention to modernizing North Korea's Soviet-era conventional weapons, even as he continues to develop the country's nuclear program.
Closer military cooperation with Russia is contributing to the acceleration of these efforts, including the use of missiles supplied by North Korea against Ukraine.
What else is known
On September 20, North Korea tested new KN-23 missiles used to strike Ukraine. Both projectiles flew much farther and higher than previous versions.
According to media reports, the DPRK has conducted at least six underground nuclear tests, the latest of which took place in 2017. There are suspicions that these tests may have caused an earthquake.
