Lawmaker: North Korea increased No. of infiltration exercises using submarines...

North Korea was found to have increased its number of infiltration exercises using submarines and mini-subs this year.

Democratic Party lawmaker Shin Hak-yong, who is a member of the parliamentary committee on national defense, said Monday that North Korea conducted a total of 50 infiltration exercises using submarines between January and August in the Yellow Sea. That’s higher than the 28 such exercises the North conducted during the same period last year and far higher than the five drills carried out in 2009.

Shin added that the number of drills using mini submarines grew from 14 to 22 between 2010 and this year.

The lawmaker said despite the rise in such exercises, South Korean patrol ships and convoys’ rate of detecting submarines stands at only around 30 percent. He stressed the need for South Korea to boost its ability to counter provocations.
(KBS World Radio, le 19-09-2011)