Kim Jong Un Guides Island Landing Drill
Kim Jong Un watches an island landing drill. Also seen in attendance are Chief of the KPA General Staff Ri Yong Gill (1) and KPA Navy Commander VAdm Kim Myong Sik (2) (Photo: Rodong Sinmun).
(Photo: Rodong Sinmun).
DPRK state media reported on 5 July (Saturday) that Kim Jong Un (Kim Cho’ng-u’n) guided and observed an island landing drill. Korean People’s Army [KPA] infantry, artillery, naval assets and air craft participated in the landing drill. In attendance with KJU were VMar Hwang Pyong So (Director of the KPA General Political Department), Gen. Ri Yong Gil (Chief of the KPA General Staff) and Gen. Pyon In Son (Director of the KPA General Staff Operations Bureau). KJU’s last observed appearance was his attendance and supervision of a swimming assessment of KPA Navy command staff.
Kim Jong Un was briefed about the plans for the drill, ordered the drill to begin and the site “looked like an active volcano.” According to KCNA as he watched the landing drill unfold, Kim Jong Un remarked that “it was possible to deal deadly blows at the enemies through initial strikes if the time for striking was properly fixed and fire was concentrated on them through prompt, accurate and united actions” and the drill’s participants “were excellent and deserved to be called a-match-for-a-hundred fighters as they underwent intensive training day and night with the extraordinary awareness that a combat drill should be carried out as scheduled.” KJU also “noted with great satisfaction that the drill was successful as it met the requirements of the Chuch’e-based war method.”
Kim Jong Un reviews plans for an island landing drill conducted by the three service branches of the KPA. Also in attendance is Col. Gen. Pak Jong Chon, Vice Chief of the KPA General Staff (Photo: Rodong Sinmun).
Kim Jong Un confers with members of the KPA high command during an island landing drill. Seen in attendance are VMar Hyong Pyong So (1), Director of the KPA General Political Department, Gen. Pyon In Son (2), Director of the KPA General Staff Operations Bureau, and Gen. Ri Yong Gil (3), Chief of the KPA General Staff (Photo: Rodong Sinmun).
Kim Jong Un and senior KPA officials watch an island landing drill (Photo: Rodong Sinmun).
(Photo: Rodong Sinmun).
(Photo: Rodong Sinmun)
(Photo: Rodong Sinmun)
(Photo: Rodong Sinmun)
Kim Jong Un salutes KPA Navy service members from a warship following an island landing drill (Photo: Rodong Sinmun).
He also inspected naval vessels from a KPA Navy warship and “congratulated the participants in the drill on their success.” He “set forth important tasks which would serve as guidelines for further developing the People’s Army into the ever-victorious revolutionary armed forces.” According to KCNA he said that “history proves that it is impossible to protect the destiny of the country and its people unless the army is bolstered up,” and underscored “the need to put more spurs to increasing the military strength which means the sovereignty of the country and the nation and the national power.” KJU called on “the KPA to intensify the training essential for augmenting the military strength” and “instructed the commanding officers to thoroughly do away with formalistic, ready-made and stylish practices in training and steadily improve forms, contents and methods of training as required by the modern warfare.” He also “instructed them to frequently organize a similar drill in the future, always bearing in mind training means a battle” and “called on the whole army to defend the sky, land and seas of the socialist homeland as firm as an iron wall, watching every movement of the enemies with vigilance.”
Kim Jong Un recalled that “the inviolable waters on the southwestern front of the country are exposed to frequent threat due to a handful of enemies and there was a dangerous incident in which the shells fired by them dropped in territorial waters of the DPRK some days ago” and said that he “took it very seriously and he was closely watching them.” KJU also “strongly warned that should the enemies repeat the wrong choice on the wrong day in the hotspot waters, he would make them regret bitterly for their action.”
