North Korea launched a new air defense missile weapon earlier this week, claiming the government has “excellent combat capabilities,” according to a release from the South Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
The government said in a press release that these two new missiles are suitable for “destroying a variety of air targets” such as attack drones and cruise missiles.
The report from KCNA does not detail the missiles and only states that “the operational and reaction modes are unique and based on special technology.” They also did not say where the tests were conducted.
Everything we know about North Korean missile arsenal.
Intercontinental missiles thought to be on undeclared missile bases
According to an August report from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), North Korea has built a series of undeclared missile operating bases that are not part of a delicate process.
The Singpang Dong missile base, 27 km away from China’s border, will contain corresponding launchers or transporters, including perhaps six to nine Hwasong-15 or Hawsong-18 Intercontinental ballistic missiles, CSIS said.
hwasong-15, or It’s known According to CSIS, the KN-22 is a missile up to 22.5 meters long and can reach targets up to 13,000 kilometers away.
North Korea may have developed the missile since its first launch in 2017. Media reports say it flew 4,475 km for 53 minutes before landing off the coast of Japan.
During the initial test, the North Korean leadership reported that the missiles had “an ultra-large heavy warhead that could hit the entire US mainland.”
The Hwasong-18 is considered by the US Military Control Association to be a solid fuel missile say It has many advantages, including reduced launch times, easier handling and storage, and the ability to launch smaller missiles.
North Korea also owns the Hawasson-19 missile, first tested and launched last November, in response to what North Korean leader Kim Jong called a “provocation” from South Korea and the United States.
Nuclear and short-range missiles
Other grounds highlighted by the CSI in its report include KAL-GOL base approximately 52 km north of the demilitarized zone with South Korea, which is reported to have a 500 km range of HWASONG-6.
The short-range missile since 1991 is estimated to be 10.9 meters long and features a single payload of up to 770 kilograms. According to CSIS, they are missiles used by many other countries, including Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Libya, Syria, Vietnam and Yemen.
The report explained that other bases can also be equipped with hwasong-9s. I’ll explain it As an expanded range version of the Hwasong-6.
The 13.5 metres long missile ranges at 1,000 kilograms and has a launch weight of 6,400 kilograms with a single warhead that is “traditional high explosive, nuclear, chemical, or biological.”
Despite the United Nations, the American Federation of Scientists (FAS) says various missiles will be supplemented by nuclear weapons Solution It imposes international sanctions on the state to build them.
2024, FAS Estimated North Korea has enough materials to produce up to 90 nuclear warheads, but it could be close to 50, less than that.