Photographs released by the North Korean state media shows that the isolated state is using China-made trucks for a new mobile rocket artillery system, which was on display last week, underscoring the difficulty in implementing the UN-backed sanctions against Pyongyang.

The images, which were published by the North Korea's state-media, shows that the vehicle used to carry Pyongyang's new Multiple Rocket Launcher System (MRLS) resembles the commercially-available Chinese-made Sinotruck  (3808 HK), HOWO truck.

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The trucks are being widely sold locally and internationally and are used by Pyongyang in its construction and mining sectors.

                                                                       Multiple rockets

Weapon experts said an MRLS is a kind of rocket-propelled artillery system which can fire multiple rockets at a target. It is usually mounted on a truck like the Sinotruck without much need for changes and adjustments,.

"You just need a launch tube that you mount on the truck," said Markus Schiller, a rocket expert based in Germany. "It's almost as easy as mounting a machine gun."

                                                                      New sanctions

Last week, the United Nations Security Council slapped Pyongyang with new sanctions in a bid to halt its nuclear program. The US and China drafted the resolution imposing harsh punishments on North Korea.

Pyongyang's media last week showed photos of the country's leader Kim Jong-un observing the military testing the MRLS. Kim has ordered North Korea's military to be ready to initiate a fresh round of nuclear tests.

Meanwhile, the manufacturers of the Sinotrucks have not answered queries about the China-made vehicles being sold to North Korea. Experts say this does not in anyway reflect China's unwillingness or otherwise to enforce the new sanctions against its hermit neighbor.

TagsMultiple Rocket Launcher System, North Korea, Sinotrucks, new sanctions, china