North Korea’s Kim orders fast deployment of ‘very accurate’ Pukguksong-2 missile after test
North Korea said it successfully tested ballistic missile to confirm the reliability of the late-stage guidance of nuclear warhead
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has approved the deployment of a new medium to long-range ballistic missile for military use following a “successful” test, the country’s official media said Monday.
The Pukguksong-2 missile, also known also as the KN-15, is a land-based variant of a submarine-launched ballistic missile, using pre-loaded solid fuel that makes it more difficult for outside observers to detect liftoff in advance.
Kim, who supervised and observed the test, voiced “great satisfaction” over the missile’s accuracy and hailed the Pukguksong-2 as a “successful strategic weapon,” the Korean Central News Agency said, without reporting when it was conducted.
“Saying with pride that the missile’s rate of hits is very accurate and Pukguksong-2 is a successful strategic weapon, he approved the deployment of this weapon system for action,” KCNA said, quoting leader Kim.
The purpose of the test was to “finally verify all the technical indexes of the weapon system and thoroughly examine its adaptability under various battle conditions, before its deployment at military units for action,” KCNA said.
Kim approved the deployment of the missile to be used by its military and ordered that it should be rapidly mass-produced, it said.
The latest test came just a week after North Korea said it had successfully tested what it called a new type of ground-to-ground medium to long-range ballistic missile that flew nearly 800 km.
South Korea’s military said Sunday a missile believed to be a Pukguksong-2 was fired from a site in the vicinity of Pukchang in South Pyeongan Province and reached an altitude of about 560 km.
Japanese officials said it landed in waters about 400 km away from Oki Islands in the Sea of Japan (East Sea).
North Korea tested the same type of missile in February, when US President Donald Trump was meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Florida, and said it was a follow-up of the success achieved by an SLBM test in August 2016.
KCNA said the latest missile was fired from a caterpillar-type transporter erector launcher, using a “cold launch” system, which initially ejects a projectile by compressed gas before its rocket engine ignites.
It said the test also confirmed necessary functions of a nuclear warhead.
Amid concerns over North Korea’s rapid progress on its missile technology, the United States has been stepping up pressure on Kim’s regime, both diplomatically and militarily.
While seeking to work more closely not only with its regional allies, but also with China, the administration of US President Donald Trump suggested even harsher sanctions be imposed on North Korea if it does not change course.
In a show of force, the United States has also sent the aircraft carrier Ronald Reagan recently from its home port of Yokosuka, Japan, to waters off the Korean Peninsula, where a naval strike group led by the aircraft carrier Carl Vinson was already deployed.
North Korea is banned by the United Nations from testing nuclear weapons or missile technology and is already subject to multiple international sanctions.
Still, there are no signs of Kim’s regime abandoning its desire to develop a nuclear-tipped missile capable of hitting as far as the US mainland.
North Korea conducted two nuclear explosions and test-fired more than 20 ballistic missiles last year alone. The missile launch Sunday was the eighth this year.
Additional reporting by Reuters
