hankyoreh

An image published by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) of a test launch of a "new type of tactical guided weapon" on Aug. 7. The KCNA indicated that the launched occurred the previous day

North Korea’s Rodong Sinmun announced on Aug. 7 that the country had conducted a test launch of a “new-type [of] tactical guided missile,” which was supervised by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Aug. 6. Given that North Korea tested what it called a “newly-developed large-caliber multiple launch guided rocket system” on July 31 and Aug. 2, this missile appears to be a “new-type [of] tactical guided weapon.” US and South Korean intelligence officials call this missile a “North Korean version of the Iskander” (KN-23), a short-range ballistic missile (SRBM).

The Rodong Sinmun reported that Kim “watched the demonstration fire [sic] of [a] new-type [of] tactical guided missiles at daybreak Tuesday” and that “Two tactical guided missiles launched at the operational airfield in the western area of the country flied [sic] across the sky over the capital area and the central inland region of the country to precisely hit the targeted islet in the East Sea of Korea.” The photos published by the Rodong Sinmun alongside the article show the missile shooting out flames during its upward trajectory off a wheeled launch pad. The missile’s exterior is similar to the “North Korean version of the Iskander” launched on May 4 and 9, and again on July 25.

That the missile passed over the “capital area” is of particular note. The missile is reported to have passed over Pyongyang and the southern area of Nampo before hitting a rock island in the sea 450km away from South Hamgyong Province. That such a powerful missile crossed the airspace of a major, heavily populated city suggests that North Korean leaders are confident about its reliability and safety.

Some observers suggest that through this most recent missile launch North Korea has at last proved that the missile will soon be put into the field. The Rodong Shinmun reported that after the launch Kim “met the leading officials and scientists in the field of national defense science and workers in the field of munitions industry who successfully conducted the demonstration fire, and had a photo taken with them.” This was the first time that Kim had taken a commemoration photo after observing a launch. Kim Dong-yub, director of research at Kyungnam University’s Institute for Far Eastern Studies, told the Hankyoreh that this means “North Korea has finished the final development of the missile and electrification tests, and has started to make it operational and mass produce it.”

In regards to missile launches after Aug. 5, North Korea has made a distinction between a “new-type [of] tactical guided missiles” and a “newly-developed large-caliber multiple launch guided rocket system.” The country called the missiles launched on July 31 and August 2 a “newly-developed large-caliber multiple launch guided rocket system” and released photos of a tracked, mobile launching pad and multiple launching tubes. North Korea completed the development of the new-type of tactical guided missiles through this recent launch, but the newly-developed rocket system is, according to analysts, still being tested. That being said, US and South Korean intelligence officials believe that these projectiles have similar flight characteristics with the North Korean Iskander.

By Yoo Kang-moon, senior staff writer

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