Analysis by the U.S. and South Korea of Pyongyang’s military exercises last year shows that night flight training operations by the Air Force and field training increased between 20 and 30 percent compared to previous years, a government source said Friday. In an apparent saber-rattling exercise, the Stalinist country’s mechanized 815 Corps conducted a large-scale training drill with tanks and armored vehicles on May 18 and 19 on the Pyongyang-Wonsan highway, even as vice ministerial inter-Korean talks on May 16-19 were underway.

The drills are seen as having come in preparation for any build-up in tensions on the peninsula after Pyongyang announced last February that it has nuclear weapons, as well as a show of strength in response to the joint South Korea-U.S. war games known as the Ulchi Focus Lens, which took place from Aug. 22 to Sept. 2.

North Korea also conducted launch tests of three apparently improved models of its Silkworm ground-to-ship missiles on June 20-21 at an artillery unit on the coast of Shinsang, North Hamgyeong Province, with some of the missiles reaching up to 200 km. During the winter training session, some artillery units equipped with SA-5 long-range ground-to-air missile that can reach over 260 km also reportedly conducted drills. Fighter jets were redeployed at some rear bases, according to the source.

(englishnews@chosun.com )