[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] What President Moon's Mention of 'North Korea's Weapons Enhancement' Means

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] President Moon Jae-in said on the 18th regarding North Korea's weapons enhancement, "The South Korea-US authorities are thoroughly analyzing it, and our military has established a defense system capable of sufficient defense."

At the New Year's press conference held at the Blue House Chuncheon Hall that day, President Moon stated, "If there are any shortcomings in our military regarding (North Korea's weapons enhancement), we will endlessly reinforce them."

The weapons enhancement mentioned by President Moon appears to refer to North Korea's new tactical missile (KN-23) improved version of the 'North Korean version of Iskander' revealed on the 14th, which is aimed at South Korea. The improved KN-23 is analyzed to be capable of carrying tactical nuclear warheads aimed at South Korea and Japan, which is interpreted as supporting North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un's recent directive to develop tactical nuclear weapons.

The improved KN-23 revealed by North Korea this year has a larger and more pointed warhead compared to the existing KN-23. The number of wheel axles on the mobile launcher vehicle carrying the missile has also increased from 4 to 5. It is capable of mounting nuclear warheads and has a range of over 600 km, putting the entire South Korean territory and some US military bases in Japan within range.

In May 2019, North Korea fired two 'North Korean version of Iskander-class' KN-23 short-range missiles using a mobile launcher vehicle (TEL). At that time, the missile, which was tested for the first time by North Korea, showed irregular altitude and flight distance, which was presumed to be part of the testing process. It is said to have performed complex evasive maneuvers such as horizontal or vertical movements during the terminal phase to evade missile defense systems.

Experts point out that low-altitude short-range missiles performing complex interception evasion maneuvers are difficult to intercept. In particular, there are concerns that if North Korea fires a mix of KN-23 missiles equipped with nuclear warheads and dozens of super-large multiple rocket launchers, interception with the existing South Korea-US missile defense network would be virtually impossible.

Military experts argue that this missile, estimated to have a descent speed of around Mach 6 and flying at an altitude of about 50 km, is not easy to intercept even with the Patriot (PAC-3) missile, which has a maximum range of about 40 km, or the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system, which intercepts ballistic missiles at altitudes above 50 km.

The PAC-3 MSE guided missile is characterized by improved rocket motors and missile control fins to increase hit probability. Its range is about twice that of the PAC-3 CRI (range about 20 km) currently operated by the military. The US Forces Korea are known to have completed performance upgrades of all existing Patriots to PAC-3 MSE.

The plan is to form an overlapping defense network with the Korean Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) core weapon, the medium-range surface-to-air missile (M-SAM) 'Cheolmae-II,' PAC-3, the currently developing long-range surface-to-air missile (L-SAM, interception altitude 50-60 km), and the US Forces Korea's THAAD system.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.