North Korea yesterday test-fired a submarine-launched missile 500km toward Japan, marking what weapons analysts called a clear step forward for its nuclear strike ambitions.
The flight distance, which was tracked by South Korea’s military, far exceeded any previous sub-launched ballistics missile (SLBM) tests, suggesting significant progress in technical prowess.
A proven SLBM system would take North Korea’s nuclear strike threat to a new level, allowing deployment far beyond the Korean Peninsula and a “second-strike” capability in the event of an attack on its military bases.
“While there are still a lot of questions about the details, this test certainly seems to have been successful,” said Jeffrey Lewis, director of the East Asia Nonproliferation Program at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California.
“This system is still in development, but North Korea is clearly making progress,” Lewis told reporters.
South Korea’s Yonhap news agency cited a military source as saying the launch had been made at an acute angle to limit the missile’s range.
If fired at the optimum angle, it could cover more than 1,000km, the source said.
UN resolutions prohibit North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology, but Pyongyang has continued to carry out numerous launches following its fourth nuclear test in January.
South Korea has responded by agreeing to deploy a sophisticated US anti-missile system — known as THAAD — a move that has strained relations with North Korea’s main diplomatic ally, China.
Lewis said that an SLBM was an “effective countermeasure” to THAAD and other missile systems with forward-looking radars, as submarines can launch missiles from behind a radar.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the launch breached his country’s air defense identification zone and condemned what he called an “unforgivable, reckless act.”
Earlier this month, North Korea fired a land-launched ballistic missile directly into Japanese-controlled waters, drawing an outraged response from Tokyo.
The latest test came just days after North Korea threatened a pre-emptive nuclear strike against South Korean and US forces who began their annual “Ulchi Freedom” military drills on Monday.
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