Kim Jong Un urges Troops to prepare for the ‘Real War’.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has urged his military to be ready “for real war” as he observed a firing contest of artillery units, Pyongyang state media said on Thursday. Kim’s remarks follow the North’s deployment of troops and weapons to help Russia during its more than three-year long offensive in Ukraine.

He has urged the soldiers to be ready “for real war” at “anytime” and be capable of “destroying the enemy in every battle”, the Korean Central News Agency reported in an English dispatch. South Korean and Western intelligence agencies have reported Pyongyang sent more than 10,000 soldiers to Russia’s Kursk region last year, along with artillery shells, missiles and long-range rocket systems.

Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, Seoul has said. Kim offered Moscow his full support for its war in Ukraine during recent talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, state media reported previously. The two heavily sanctioned nations signed a military deal last year, including a mutual defense clause, during a rare visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to Pyongyang.

While referring to the ‘firing contest of artillery units’, Kim Jong Un has emphasised the potentials of The MLRS, which is a counterpart of Russia’s BM-27 Uragan self-propelled 240mm rocket launcher, equipped with 22 barrels capable of firing unguided rockets with 90-kilogram (198 pounds) warheads.

The launcher is competent of hitting targets as far away as 40 miles (65 kilometers). Aside from missiles, artillery equipment, and ammunition, North Korea has also sent an estimated 14,000 troops to Moscow to aid in the ongoing Russo-Ukrainian war.

Team Maverick