Visitors to a South Korean observatory that overlooks North Korea said the appearance of artillery pieces with their barrels pointed south on the border was worrying, as tensions between the two countries intensify.
The two Koreas have traded barbs and strengthened their postures along the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) separating them since September, after a mine blast there wounded three South Korean soldiers. South Korea has demanded that North Korea apologise, while Pyongyang has accused Seoul of fabricating the incident.
On Friday, South Korean media photographed an armoured vehicle in clear view near the frontier. By Monday, there were three with their gun barrels pointed south, according to a Reuters witness.
“I’d only seen on TV that North Korea had deployed 122-mm artillery, but seeing the area in person makes me realise just how real the danger is,” Jang Gil-seong said outside the Aegibong observatory, which overlooks North Korea’s Kaephung county from about 1.4km away.
“I’m really concerned about how much South Korea will need to do to prepare for and respond to this threat in the future.”
Hannah Robbins, a 28-year-old tourist from Canada, said her tour group had only found out about the artillery pieces after their guide told them about the weapons at the observatory.
“We’re a bit scared obviously,” she said yesterday.
“The tour guide was like ‘don’t worry, they won’t shoot’ but then it’s a bit of a worry that we have right now.”
Analysts identified the weapons as M-1981 122-mm self-propelled howitzers, an older North Korean artillery system believed to have entered service in the late 1970s.
They have a maximum range of about 24km, putting areas such as the South Korean town of Gimpo where the observatory is located within reach, although they are less powerful than newer artillery systems, said Yang Uk, a military expert at Seoul’s Asan Institute for Policy Studies.
“I would view this more as a display of firepower than a meaningful increase in combat capability,” Yang said.
“The fact that it was positioned where it can be easily seen suggests it was deployed to be noticed.” — Reuters
