North Korea conducts test on new super-large warhead: State media Weapons News

Table Of Content

• North Korea says it tested ‘super-large’ cruise missile warhead and new anti-aircraft missile
• Newsletter
• House approves $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan
• North Korea’s Kim shuts agencies working for reunification with South Korea
• North Korea says it has tested submarine-launched cruise missiles
• South Korea says North Korea has fired cruise missiles, adding to provocative run in weapons tests
• ABC News Live

Those cruise missile tests followed the Jan. 14 launch of a new solid-fuel intermediate-range missile, which underscored North Korean efforts to advance weapons that could target U.S. assets in the Pacific, including the military hub of Guam. In announcing the development of larger warheads for cruise missiles, North Korea could be trying to emphasize that these missiles are intended to be armed with nuclear weapons. Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are at their highest in years, with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un dialing up his weapons demonstrations, which have included more powerful missiles aimed at the U.S. mainland and U.S. targets in the Pacific. The United States, South Korea and Japan have responded by expanding their combined military training and sharpening their deterrence strategies built around strategic U.S. assets. Experts say cruise missiles present a unique danger in that they can fly low and maneuver, making them potentially very difficult to intercept by air and missile defenses.

North Korea says it tested ‘super-large’ cruise missile warhead and new anti-aircraft missile

Experts say Kim’s long-term goal is to force the United States to accept the idea of the North as a nuclear power and negotiate security concessions and sanctions relief from a position of strength. While most analysts downplay Kim’s threats of war, some say there’s a possibility that he could attempt a direct military provocation in a limited scale that he can contain without letting it escalate into a full-blown war. Friday’s launches came hours after North Korean state media reported that Kim reiterated his focus on strengthening his naval forces as he inspected the construction of warships at a shipyard in Nampho on the west coast. The largely isolated country has recently bolstered military ties with Moscow, and this month it thanked Russia for its veto blocking the renewal of a panel of UN experts that monitored international sanctions against it. It added that it was "closely watching" the North's military activities, and if Pyongyang "commits a provocation, we will punish it overwhelmingly and resolutely".

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Missile-firing submarines would also add a maritime threat to the North’s growing collection of solid-fuel weapons fired from land vehicles that are designed to overwhelm the missile defenses of South Korea, Japan and the United States. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea said Wednesday it conducted a test-firing of long-range cruise missiles with an aim to sharpen its counterattack and strategic strike capabilities, in its latest display of weapons threatening South Korea and Japan. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the South Korean and U.S. militaries were analyzing the launches that were detected in waters northeast of the eastern coastal city of Wonsan. “Our military has increased surveillance and vigilance and is working closely with our U.S. partners and is closely monitoring signs for further activity from North Korea,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement. They supplement the North’s vast arsenal of ballistic missiles, including intercontinental variants, which are said to be aimed at the continental United States.

House approves $95 billion in aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan

Unlike ballistic weapons, North Korea’s cruise missiles are not banned under United Nations sanctions imposed on Pyongyang. The North in early January fired hundreds of artillery rounds for three consecutive days into waters near their disputed western sea border, prompting the South to conduct similar firings in response. The exchange caused no known casualties or damage, but the sea boundary had been the site of several bloody skirmishes and attacks in past years. The launch followed tests on Jan. 24 and Jan. 28 of the Pulhwasal-3-31 cruise missile North Korea says is designed to be fired from submarines. North Korea will continue to "make improvements in the performance of its conventional weapons, as well as its cruise missiles", on top of its nuclear programme, he told AFP. Analysts have warned that North Korea could be testing cruise missiles ahead of sending them to Russia for use in Ukraine, with Washington and Seoul claiming Mr Kim has shipped weapons to Moscow, despite UN sanctions banning any such moves.

North Korea’s Kim shuts agencies working for reunification with South Korea

Cruise missiles tend to be jet-propelled and fly at a lower altitude than more sophisticated ballistic missiles, making them harder to detect and intercept. United States, South Korea and Japan have been strengthening their combined military exercises and sharpening their nuclear deterrence strategies. North Korea also carried out a test launch on Friday afternoon of a “Pyoljji-1-2”, which state media said was a “new-type anti-aircraft missile”.

North Korea’s Kim calls on military to ‘accelerate’ war preparations

The weapons tests were part of the “regular activities of the administration and its affiliated defence science institutes”, KCNA reported, referencing the operation of “new-type weapon systems”. Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have increased in recent months as Kim accelerates his weapons development and issues provocative threats of nuclear conflict with the U.S. and its Asian allies. There are concerns that Kim, emboldened by the steady advancement of his nuclear arsenal and strengthened ties with Russia, would further ramp up pressure against his rivals in an election year in the United States and South Korea. Experts say Kim’s long-term goal is to force the U.S. to accept the idea of the North as a nuclear power and negotiate security concessions and sanctions relief from a position of strength.

(2nd LD) N. Korea says it conducted 'super-large warhead' test for strategic cruise missile - Yonhap News Agency

(2nd LD) N. Korea says it conducted 'super-large warhead' test for strategic cruise missile.

Posted: Sat, 20 Apr 2024 01:07:25 GMT [source]

In January, North Korea conducted two tests of a new cruise missile designed to be launched from submarines, which leader Kim Jong Un described as a meaningful step toward his goals of building a nuclear-armed navy. The North also conducted tests of a long-range cruise missile, which it has described as nuclear-capable and can cover ranges of up to 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) — potentially putting U.S. military bases in Japan within reach. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea said it tested cruise missiles outfitted with new “super-large” warheads as well as a new type of anti-aircraft missile, extending a streak in weapons demonstrations that has rival South Korea worried. "The DPRK Missile Administration has conducted a power test of a super-large warhead designed for 'Hwasal-1 Ra-3' strategic cruise missile", KCNA news agency said this morning, referring to North Korea by an abbreviation for its official name.

South Korea’s military said the submarine unveiled by North Korea in September, the “Hero Kim Kun Ok,” did not look ready for operational duty and suggested the North was exaggerating its capabilities. Still, it would take considerable time, resources and technological improvements for the heavily sanctioned nation to build a fleet of at least several submarines that could travel quietly and execute attacks reliably, analysts say. Lee Sung Joon, spokesperson for South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the South Korean and U.S. militaries were analyzing the launches, including the possibility that the North exaggerated the flight times. One of the potential crisis points is the disputed western sea boundary between the Koreas, which has been the site of several bloody naval skirmishes over the years.

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The countries are also sharpening their deterrence strategies, with Seoul in particular seeking stronger assurances from Washington that the United States would swiftly and decisively use its nukes to defend its ally in the event of a North Korean nuclear attack. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the South Korean and U.S. militaries were analyzing the launches that were detected around 7 a.m. It did not immediately provide more details, including the number of missiles fired, how far they flew, and whether they were launched from land or sea. Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, said it appeared that the tests were intended "to determine the type and potency - in terms of weight and destructiveness - of a warhead that can be equipped on a highly manoeuvrable cruise missile".

The North on Jan. 14 also tested a new solid-fuel intermediate-range missile, which underscored its efforts to advance its weapons that could target U.S. assets in the Pacific, including the military hub of Guam. North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency said that the weapon tested on Tuesday was the Hwasal-2 and that the launch did not affect the security of neighbors. Following the second launch, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reiterated his goal of building a nuclear-armed navy to counter what he described as growing external threats. Unlike their ballistic counterparts, the testing of cruise missiles is not banned under current UN sanctions on North Korea. Nuclear-propelled submarines can quietly travel long distances and approach enemy shores to deliver strikes, which would bolster Kim’s declared aim of building a nuclear arsenal that could viably threaten the U.S. mainland.

Earlier this month, North Korea tested what it said was a new type of intermediate-range solid-fueled ballistic missile loaded with a newly developed hypersonic glide vehicle. While the launches of ballistic missiles have garnered headlines, the nuclear-armed country has also tested a number of new strategic cruise missiles and submarine-launched weapons since the beginning of the year. North Korea in recent years has been expanding its lineup of cruise missiles, which are designed to be fired from both land and naval assets. These weapons supplement the country’s huge lineup of ballistic missiles, including short-range solid-fuel missiles aimed at overwhelming missile defenses in South Korea and intercontinental ballistic missiles designed to reach the U.S. mainland. The report came a day after South Korea’s military said it detected North Korea firing multiple cruise missiles over waters near the eastern port of Sinpo, where the North has a major shipyard developing submarines.

Kim issued similar comments about a nuclear-armed navy in September while attending the launching ceremony of what the North described as a new submarine capable of firing tactical nuclear weapons from underwater. He said then that the country was pursuing a nuclear-propelled submarine and that it plans to remodel existing submarines and surface vessels so they can handle nuclear weapons. The U.S., South Korea and Japan in response have been expanding their combined military exercises, which Kim condemns as invasion rehearsals, and sharpening their deterrence strategies built around nuclear-capable U.S. assets. He then issued unspecified important tasks for “realizing the nuclear weaponization of the navy and expanding the sphere of operation,” which he described as crucial goals considering the “prevailing situation and future threats,” the report said. Tensions on the Korean Peninsula are at their highest point in years, after Kim accelerated his weapons development to an unprecedented pace while issuing provocative nuclear threats against the United States, South Korea and Japan.

In recent years, North Korea has tested a variety of missiles designed to be fired from submarines as it pursues the ability to conduct nuclear strikes from underwater. In theory, such capacity would bolster its deterrent by ensuring a survivable capability to retaliate after absorbing a nuclear attack on land. State media said the missiles were Pulhwasal-3-31, a new type of weapon first tested last week in land-based launches from North Korea’s western coast. North Korea’s official newspaper Rodong Sinmun published photos of what appeared to be at least two missiles fired separately. Both created grayish-white clouds as they broke the water surface and soared into the air at an angle of around 45 degrees, which possibly suggests they were fired from torpedo launch tubes.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency did not specify the number of missiles tested or the details of their performance. The agency said the tests were part of the country’s “normal activities” for military development and did not affect the security of neighbors. The United States and its Asian allies in response have strengthened their combined military exercises, which are increasingly featuring U.S. strategic assets such as aircraft carriers, long-range bombers and nuclear-powered submarines.