SEOUL, 24 September, 2026 (Kamran Raja): North Korea conducted a test firing of an upgraded 240mm guided multiple rocket launcher system on Tuesday, state news agency KCNA reported, saying the system would strengthen the country’s firepower along its southern border. KCNA said the test demonstrated the accuracy and extended range of rockets equipped with an autonomous precision guidance system, with the weapons capable of striking targets up to 100 kilometres away in trajectory flight mode and 115 kilometres in a combined glide mode. Pak Jong-chon, vice-chairman of North Korea’s Central Military Commission, who oversaw the test, called for the concentration of highly destructive attack forces along the southern border. North Korea has been steadily developing its tactical and conventional weapons, including systems intended for deployment near the border with South Korea. Lim Eul-chul, a professor at Kyungnam University’s Institute for Far Eastern Studies, said the precision guidance system could allow North Korea to target key facilities in the Seoul metropolitan area with a margin of error of only a few metres, potentially increasing the threat to the densely populated capital region. South Korea’s Defence Ministry did not immediately comment on the reported test. In a separate statement, North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui said the country’s nuclear weapons status was irreversible and that Pyongyang would become more resolute after the United States, South Korea and Japan reaffirmed their commitment to the complete denuclearisation of North Korea at a trilateral meeting.