What are the new weapons tested by North Korea?What are the new weapons tested by North Korea?

Country has intensified war rehearsals in the last five years. The country has intensified weapons testing in the last five years, demonstrating the sophistication of its military arsenal.

(DW) North Korea has stepped up its testing of new weapons in the past five years, demonstrating the sophistication of its war arsenal. The new North Korean breakthrough would be a submarine drone capable of creating “radioactive tsunami” that would destroy naval attack fleets and ports.

Pyongyang claims that its nuclear forces are capable of destroying its rivals, and frequently conducts provocative weapons tests, the results of which are made public in detail.

Foreign experts question the country’s real nuclear war power. Despite the military superiority of the alliance formed by its rivals the United States and South Korea, the new systems tested by Pyongyang can cause real damage in the event of a war.

There is no doubt that North Korea possesses nuclear bombs and missiles capable of reaching the continent in the United States, South Korea, and Japan. What is unclear is whether the country has mastered the complicated engineering required to put the bombs and missiles together.

Check out the new warfare systems Pyongyang has tested in recent years:

Short-range ballistic missiles

Since 2019, after the failure of the dialogue with Washington, North Korea began testing these new systems to renew its tactical arsenal and equip it with nuclear capability. In operational terms, this is the most real threat currently due to the proximity to South Korean territory and American bases present in the region.

The KN-25 is a large-caliber multiple missile launcher. The KN-23 and KN-24 are short-range missiles that operate on solid fuel and can trace trajectories that are not completely ballistic, which makes them difficult to intercept. These systems are called “tactical” nuclear weapons.

Apparently inspired by the Russian Iskander, the KN-23 appears to be the regime’s preferred system due to the amount of testing performed and the variations in design of the projectile or its launch pads. This type of missile is designed to be maneuverable and low-flying, theoretically offering a better chance of circumventing South Korean and U.S. missile defense systems.

According to the North Korean state news agency KCNA, these new artillery systems can carry nuclear warheads, and just four missiles would be enough to take out an air base. The nuclear capability of these systems has not been independently confirmed.

Although the country can put simple nuclear warheads on some of its older missiles, such as the Scuds and Rodong, further technological advances and more nuclear tests to build smaller and more developed warheads would probably be needed for their use on the new tactical systems, experts assess.

Hypersonic missile

First mentioned at the eighth congress of North Korea’s single party in January 2021, the hypersonic missile began to be tested in different variations that same year.

Subsequently, the regime introduced a system with supposed operational or near-operational capability, the Hwasong-8 – an intermediate-range missile that can reach up to 3,000 kilometers, meaning it can hit American bases in Japan and Guam. The Hwasong-8 can also theoretically evade missile shields.

Long-range cruise missiles

Since September 2021, Pyongyang has on several occasions tested different variations of high-precision remote-controlled long-range projectiles. This year, the country revealed the names of two tested models: Hwasal-1 and Hwasal-2, which would be capable of flying 1,500 and 2,000 kilometers.

Seoul and Washington apparently have difficulty detecting these launches, because although these models reach only subsonic speeds, they can fly for more than two hours in irregular patterns and very close to the ground.

In mid-March, Pyongyang announced that it was able to launch for the first time from a submarine two long-range strategic missiles, whose flight characteristics appear to match the Hwasal-1.

Intercontinental range ballistic missile (ICBM)

After a first and apparently unsuccessful attempt in March 2022, the North Korean regime has successfully launched an intercontinental range ballistic missile (ICBM) on two occasions.

With a range of more than 15,000 kilometers (9,000 miles) – theoretically capable of reaching any region on the planet except South America – the missile was only launched at high angles to prevent it from flying over other countries. Only a launch with operational trajectories would make it possible to know whether the projectile is able to withstand the harsh conditions of re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.

In any case, the Hwasong-17 is an ideal system for the regime to develop a multiple nuclear warhead – a feature that under operational conditions could put U.S. missile shields to the test.

In addition to the Hwasong-17, North Korea possesses two other ICBMs: the Hwasong-14 and Hwasong-15. All three are powered by liquid fuel and would have nuclear capability.

There are questions whether the country already has the technology to protect the warheads from high temperatures and the high-stress environment during the missile’s re-entry into the earth’s atmosphere.

At a military parade earlier this year, North Korea displayed about a dozen intercontinental-range ballistic missiles, an unprecedented number that would indicate progress in its efforts to mass-produce powerful weapons.

Nuclear submarine drone

The latest announcement of an alleged warlike breakthrough would be the unmanned submarine drone capable of unleashing a “radioactive tsunami” that would destroy naval attack fleets and ports. “This nuclear attack submarine device can be placed on any coast and port or towed by a surface ship,” KCNA reported.

The submarine drone tested is similar to the Russian system known as Poseidon, which when exploded causes giant waves of pollution. In addition to destroying fleets and infrastructure, this type of weaponry is capable of causing terrible environmental damage to coastal regions, which would remain contaminated for decades, both on land and in the surrounding waters.

According to KCNA, the underwater drone began development in 2012 and has already undergone 50 types of tests in the past two years, 29 of which were in the presence of North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un.

Analysts also doubt the claims, due to the high complexity such a system requires. Russia claims to have underwater drones in operational condition for months, although there is enormous secrecy surrounding the project. It is known, however, that the Russian system requires nuclear propulsion – a capability that Pyongyang does not possess.

Nuclear warheads

North Korea is estimated to possess dozens of nuclear warheads. Estimates on the number of them range from between 20 and 60 to as many as 115.

The main question is whether they are compact enough to fit on a missile. Experts differ on this capability. Some argue that because of the number of years the country has invested in its nuclear program, it has probably already achieved this technology. Others say that Pyongyang is far from building such warheads.

So far, the country has conducted six underground nuclear tests to manufacture warheads that can be used in its projectiles. In the last one conducted in 2017, Pyongyang said it was the detonation of a thermonuclear bomb built for ICBMs. The explosion created a magnitude 6.3 tremor, and studies estimate the explosive content at about 50 to 140 kilotons of TNT.

In comparison: the two atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki during World War II, which killed 210,000 people, had explosive contents of 15 and 20 kilotons of TNT, respectively.

Seoul estimates that North Korea has 70 kilograms of plutonium for nuclear weapons, in addition to a considerable amount of enriched uranium.

The North Korean Yongbyon complex has facilities to produce both plutonium and highly enriched uranium, the two main ingredients of nuclear weapons. Pyongyang is also believed to possess at least one more secret uranium enrichment site.

cn/ek (Efe, AP)

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