Seo Wook, Minister of National Defense, Says "North Korea's SLBM Is Not a Provocation"

Minister of National Defense Seo Wook is attending the National Assembly's National Defense Committee's audit of the Ministry of National Defense held at the National Assembly on the 21st, providing a work report. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] Defense Minister Seo Wook's remarks that North Korea's new submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) launched on the 19th was not a provocation have sparked controversy.

On the 21st, during the comprehensive audit of the National Defense Committee of the National Assembly, Minister Seo responded, "A provocation is something that causes damage to airspace, territory, territorial waters, and citizens." Instead, he added, "We distinguish the terminology, and it appears to be a 'threat from North Korea.'"

Minister Seo also said, "SLBMs are not analyzed based on a single launch," adding, "We need to look more closely at the launch platform issue and whether the platform operates stably after the launch."

Although North Korea claims to have succeeded in a test launch from a submarine, this means that further analysis is needed on whether the submarine operates normally after the launch.

In response, Park Jong-seung, director of the Agency for Defense Development (ADD), answered Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Byung-joo's question about "how much difference there is between North Korea's SLBM and our level" by saying, "From the perspective that the SLBM missile should be seen as a complete system together with the platform, I think there is a difference of more than five years."

Specifically, Director Park explained, "Based on the Sinpo-class (2000-ton class) submarine from which the SLBM was launched, an abnormal method was taken by installing the launch tube on the conning tower," adding, "I judge that the Sinpo-class was closer to a test ship in nature."

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