DPRK (North Korea)
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screencap from an old North Korean film. Mix of some glitched videos and a few filters to create an even more elaborate mess.
In North Korea, the gap is big between the grey town, the strict behaviour of the people, and the propaganda posters where KIm Il Sung is always laughing...
Pyongyang North Korea
© Eric Lafforgue
© 2015 SCOTT A WOODWARD photography
After Donald Trump's failed attempt at brokering peace on the Korean peninsula, the DPRK (North Korea) resumed testing missiles in 2019. Initially most of them were relatively short-range types, which, in the context of ballistic missile means ranges of less than 1000 km.
In September of 2021, North Korea launched two KN-23 ballistic missiles from a train, which was a new development. In its propaganda, the DPRK always emphasises its mobile launchers, but most of them are wheeled road vehicles. Putting launchers on a train makes some sense, though. The DPRK has poor roads, but a fairly developed rail network.
The train consisted of an M62 locomotive, originally from the Soviet Union and two cars. The first is a regular Chinese P61 box car, the second looks externally similar but has extra doors and an opening roof for two missile launchers. You can see one of them erected in this picture, with one half of the roof opened.
After spending a few hours telling us about American Imperialists at the De-militarization Zone (DMZ: the 4-mile neutral area between North and South Korea), this soldier was more than happy to have his picture taken (also one with me), shake hands, and have a quick hello.
The North Koreans claim that on their side of the border, they have 120 farmers reaping crops for the people. On the American side, there are nuclear warheads. They really say it's the Americans occupying South Korea, and almost never use the term "South Korea" when talking about the south, it's always "The American Imperialists."
Every North Korean citizen above the age of 17 wears that pin he has, with the image of their Eternal President Kim Il Sung.
With the roof and the doors closed, there is little to reveal that the rear car houses missile launchers. Hiding launchers means that any adversary that wants to destroy them on the ground has to play a shell game. Keeping track of which car is just a freight car and which houses rockets becomes extremely difficult.
The missile launchers are located on opposite sides of the car, each covered by side of the roof. This shows the train after one missile has been launched, with its launch rail still erected, and the other ready for launch.
M62 diesel-electric locomotives were built in Soviet times in Luhansk (formally in Ukraine, but currently occupied by Russia/ pro-Russian separatists), but widely exported to Soviet client states including a number of Eastern European countries and North Korea. They continue to serve with the Korean State Railway of the DPRK.