hankyoreh

The South Korean military believes that the subject of the “very important test” carried out by North Korea at its Sohae Satellite Launching Ground on Dec. 7 was a high-output engine using liquid fuel, the Hankyoreh learned on Dec. 9. The military has reserved its judgment on the question of whether this test will lead to a satellite launch or an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) launch.

“The launch pad at Tongchang Village isn’t a facility capable of conducting solid fuel tests. The view of intelligence officials is that this test wasn’t related to solid fuel,” said a senior official in the South Korean military on Monday. The officials’ remarks suggest that the test may have been held at the vertical launcher at Tongchang Village, which is designed to test liquid fuel engines.

The view in some quarters is that North Korea’s test was designed to increase the engine output of the Hwasong-15 ICBM, which was tested in November 2017. During that test, North Korea unveiled what it called the “Mt. Paektu engine,” which combined two of the Hwasong-14 engines. The Mt. Paektu liquid fuel engine is based on the RD-250 twin engine developed by the Soviets. North Korea currently uses liquid fuel engines in its satellite launch vehicles and its ICBMs.

The US continues to bolster efforts to monitor movements in North Korea. The Rivet Joint RC-135W, the US’ primary plane for frequency monitoring and surveillance, flew at an elevation of 9.4km above southern Gyeonggi Province on Monday.

By Yoo Kang-moon, senior staff writer

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