Ministry of National Defense Assures "Sufficient Alternative Forces" Amid Concerns Over 'Hyunmoo Misfire Accident' Preparedness

On the afternoon of the 12th, eight days after the incident, the site where the 'Hyunmoo-2' ballistic missile launched by our military on the evening of the 4th malfunctioned and fell within Gangneung Air Base was opened to members of the National Assembly's Defense Committee from the Democratic Party of Korea and the press.

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] The Ministry of National Defense recently reiterated its position that there are no issues despite ongoing public concerns about readiness following the 'Hyunmoo-2C' missile misfire accident.

On the 23rd, the Ministry of National Defense sent a text message to reporters stating, "We are well aware that some public concerns exist regarding our military's readiness due to recent abnormal missile misfires of the Hyunmoo missile, but we possess sufficient forces to adjust and compensate for these issues."

It emphasized, "Our military is strictly managing the situation based on the strong ROK-US combined defense posture against various provocations from North Korea on land, sea, and air."

The Ministry added, "In particular, the ROK and the US have the capability to detect and defend against signs of North Korea's nuclear and missile provocations in advance and to overwhelmingly strike in case of emergency, and we are strengthening practical response readiness through various ROK-US combined exercises."

The Ministry of National Defense stated, "Our military will continue to dramatically enhance the capabilities and posture of the Korean-style 3-axis system, including expanding surveillance and reconnaissance assets," and emphasized, "We will further solidify the ability and posture to deter and respond to North Korea's advanced nuclear and missile threats by enhancing the US extended deterrence execution capability."

In response to North Korea's launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) on the 4th, the Hyunmoo-2C ballistic missile fired by our military on the same day flew abnormally immediately after launch and fell inside a military base in the opposite direction of the intended launch path.

Then, in the early morning of the 5th, one of the two ATACMS tactical surface-to-surface missiles fired as a counterstrike lost tracking signal during flight. This issue drew criticism at the National Assembly's National Defense Committee's audit of the Ministry of National Defense, Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Army Headquarters, and the media has raised concerns about the possibility of a zero-point counterstrike in an emergency.

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