On the early morning of May 22, 1998 Kim Jong Il’s car was climbing to a unit of the KPA on Kkachi Peak more than 1 000m above sea level in the eastern sector of the front.
The soldiers were so excited to see their Supreme Commander on the frontline height, but the commander of the unit was more than nervous because he had to explain the situation in the area on the foggy day. It was in such a hazy fog that even the nearby hills were hardly visible.
He accompanied Kim Jong Il to the top of the height and briefed him on the enemy units’ deployment and their circumstances, pointing to some of the visible hills that were shrouded in clouds.
Kim Jong Il told him that he knew them all and continued: “That is Sonjo Rock over there and those in front of it are Height 351 and Mt Wolbi.”
The latter and other officials in his company were surprised that he was familiar with all the objects that were hardly visible and invisible in a dense fog.
Kim Jong Il knew the topography of the area south of the Military Demarcation Line inside out.
The commander of the unit wondered if he had already been there several times.
Kim Jong Il said, “I can see everything because I am wearing glasses. With glasses on you can see them all, too.”
The officials looked confusedly at him, who laughed out loud.
They realized that he came to master the geographical features of the front line as he had made painstaking efforts to get the army units fully prepared to defend the country and the people.
