North Korea’s Kim Jong-un orders military to get ready for ‘real war’ as he supervises fire assault drill

State media said Pyongyang fired a volley of missiles to show its capability to ‘counter an actual war’

The latest launches came as the US and South Korea were set to kick off large-scale military exercises next week

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North Korea conducted an artillery drill at an undisclosed location on March 9. Photo: KCNA/KNS via AP

Published: 8:47am, 10 Mar 2023Updated: 11:10am, 10 Mar 2023

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un ordered the military to intensify drills for a “real war,” state media said on Friday, after overseeing a fire assault drill that it said proved the country’s capability to counter an “actual war.”

North Korea fired a short-range ballistic missile off its west coast on Thursday, South Korea’s military said, adding it was analysing possibilities the North may have launched multiple missiles simultaneously from the same area.

Photos released by the North’s KCNA news agency showed at least six missiles being fired at the same time.

KCNA said a unit trained for “strike missions” fired a “powerful volley at the targeted waters” and showed its capability to “counter an actual war.”

“[Kim] stressed that the fire assault subunits should be strictly prepared for the greatest perfection in carrying out the two strategic missions, that is, first to deter war and second to take the initiative in war, by steadily intensifying various simulated drills for real war …,” KCNA said.