Test firing on North Korean MRL, March 2016 | Photo: Rodong Sinmun
North Korea’s state media described the country’s new 300mm rocket artillery system for the first time on Friday. The article and photographs published by state media – combined with the data reported by the South Korean military Thursday – revealed details of the weapon, including that it may be among the longest ranging of such weapons and may take design cues from American-made weapons.
The 300mm multiple rocket launcher (MRL) has been suspected to exist since at least 2014 and was first shown in a parade in Pyongyang on October 10, 2015, but Friday’s report is the first time
North Korea’s state media described the country’s new 300mm rocket artillery system for the first time on Friday. The article and photographs published by state media – combined with the data reported by the South Korean military Thursday – revealed details of the weapon, including that it may be among the longest ranging of such weapons and may take design cues from American-made weapons.
The 300mm multiple rocket launcher (MRL) has been suspected to exist since at least 2014 and was first shown in a parade in Pyongyang on October 10, 2015, but Friday’s report is the first time Pyongyang’s media has clearly described the system in conjunction with photographs.
John G. Grisafi is an analyst and Korean linguist from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Having previously worked as an analyst for the United States Army in South Korea and studied Korean at the Defense Language Institute, he is now majoring in East Asian Languages & Civilization and History at the University of Pennsylvania.