ADD Director: "We Have Superiority Over North Korea in Cruise Missiles"

At the National Assembly Audit, "Our Military's Supersonic Cruise Missile Operational Capability Possible Within 1-2 Years"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] Park Jong-seung, director of the Agency for Defense Development (ADD), emphasized that "South Korea has an absolute advantage over North Korea in cruise missile capabilities."

On the 13th, during the National Assembly National Defense Committee's audit of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) held at the Gwacheon Defense Acquisition Program Administration building, in response to a question from Kim Byung-joo, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, about the "level of North Korea's long-range cruise missile technology advancement," he stated, "The cruise missile revealed today seems to have extended its fuel tank to fly farther, but the engine itself is not considered to be significantly advanced."

North Korean media reported that the previous day, under the observation of Chairman Kim Jong-un, a test launch of a long-range strategic cruise missile deployed to a tactical nuclear operational unit was conducted, hitting a target 2000 km away.

In response, the Joint Chiefs of Staff stated, "North Korea launched two cruise missiles toward the West Sea from the area around Kaechon, South Pyongan Province, starting around 2 a.m. yesterday," adding, "The military was monitoring the situation in real time."

Along with this, the ADD also explained about South Korea's supersonic cruise missiles. In response to Kim Byung-joo's question, "Last year, you successfully developed a supersonic cruise missile faster than the Hyunmoo-3 (cruise missile), right?" Director Park replied, "That's correct." When asked if the supersonic cruise missile could be operational within 1 to 2 years, Director Park answered, "As you speculate, it won't be long."

The supersonic cruise missile, whose development was completed at the end of 2020, has a higher speed than existing missiles, enhancing the missile's survivability and destructive power. It is reported to be approximately 2.5 to 3 times faster than the long-range cruise missile tested by North Korea. The military publicly revealed footage of the supersonic cruise missile launch last September.

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