Ministry of National Defense: "North Korean Missiles Are Conventional Ballistic Missiles"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The Ministry of National Defense emphasized that it possesses a system capable of detecting and intercepting North Korea's ballistic missiles. This appears to be a response to the controversy over North Korea's potential development of hypersonic missiles.

On the 13th, Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Boo Seung-chan stated at a regular briefing, "Many people express concerns about our military's response capabilities, but to be clear, our military not only has detection capabilities for this projectile but also interception capabilities," adding, "We are continuously strengthening our response system."

Regarding the ballistic missile launched by North Korea, it was assessed within the category of a conventional ballistic missile. Spokesperson Boo explained, "The maximum speed during the boost phase, that is, the maximum speed at a stage similar to that of a conventional ballistic missile, is Mach 10, but this does not mean that the gliding speed is Mach 10."

In the case of hypersonic missiles, it is known that after the first-stage booster separates following the boost phase, speeds exceeding Mach 5 are maintained during the gliding or descending phase. For North Korea's existing Nodong missile series, the maximum speed during the boost phase reaches about Mach 9 to 10, and the Musudan missile reaches a maximum speed of up to Mach 14, but these are not classified as 'hypersonic missiles.'

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