Ministry of National Defense: "North Korean Missiles Are Not Hypersonic" (Comprehensive)

On the 6th, the Korean Central News Agency reported that North Korea conducted a test launch of a hypersonic missile on the 5th. Previously, North Korea announced that it had conducted the first test launch of the newly developed hypersonic missile Hwasong-8 on September 28 last year. The photo shows the hypersonic missile launched the day before (left) and the Hwasong-8 launched last year (right), with somewhat different warhead shapes. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Daehyun] The Ministry of National Defense has classified North Korea's claimed "hypersonic missile" as a "projectile that has not reached the technology."

On the 7th, a Ministry of National Defense official voluntarily held a briefing and said, "The performance of the hypersonic missile launch, such as range and lateral maneuvering, claimed by North Korea in the report on January 6, appears to be exaggerated."

The Ministry of National Defense stated that the missile North Korea launched on the 5th had a speed of about Mach 6 and an altitude below 50 km. It added that the claimed 700 km flight distance by North Korea was not reached.

This is an official rebuttal to North Korea's claim announced the previous day that it test-fired a hypersonic missile on the 5th and hit a target 700 km away.

North Korea conducted the first test launch of the newly developed hypersonic missile "Hwasong-8" on September 28 last year. Regarding this, the Ministry of National Defense explained, "There has been no additional technological advancement compared to the missile North Korea claimed to have test-fired four months ago, and it is judged to be one of the other types of missiles first revealed at the Defense Development Exhibition in October last year."

An official from a Ministry of National Defense-affiliated missile research agency also said, "From our country's perspective, it is regarded as a ballistic missile with a maneuverable warhead that has already been developed."

Another official from the same agency stated that the missile North Korea fired this time is similar to the domestically developed "Hyunmoo-2C." He emphasized, "Hyunmoo-2C also has a maximum speed of about Mach 9, but it is not described as 'hypersonic.' It is a technology operated by the United States decades ago and tested by South Korea several years ago, so 'hypersonic' is 'North Korea's own expression.'"

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