hankyoreh

A plenary session of the National Assembly’s National Defense Committee convenes on March 29 for an emergency briefing on North Korea’s ICBM launch. (pool photo)

When North Korea unsuccessfully test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile on March 16, the missile exploded in the skies above Pyongyang, government officials said on Tuesday. In addition, South Korea and the US are actively considering the option of holding joint military exercises.

In a closed-door briefing at the National Assembly’s National Defense Committee on Tuesday, South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense said the reason North Korea fired the Hwasong-15 ICBM on March 24 under the guise of the newer Hwasong-17 was because of the failure of the March 16 test launch.

“North Korea claims that [the missile launched on March 24] was the Hwasong-17, but the Ministry of National Defense presented several pieces of evidence today contradicting that claim,” said Min Hong-chul, the Democratic Party lawmaker who serves as chair of the committee, in a meeting with reporters after the briefing.

“The conclusion of the South Korean and US militaries is that the missile was the Hwasong-15 and that the launch method has been upgraded somewhat to a mobile launcher,” Min said.

In the failed launch on March 16, the missile — which is presumed to be the Hwasong-17 ICBM — reportedly exploded at a height of several kilometers.

“The missile exploded when it was several kilometers in the air, but the ministry did not say exactly whether the blast caused any harm to private homes,” Min said.

Ki Dong-min, another Democratic Party lawmaker, said that the ministry responded to a question by saying that the debris from the missile “appears to have fallen on rice paddies, rather than on people’s homes.”

Since North Korea has scrapped its moratorium on ICBM launches, the South Korean military is exploring the option of holding field training exercises with the US military.

“Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle suggested that we may have to hold real joint exercises with the US, and the Ministry of National Defense said it would actively look into that,” Min said.

When asked whether that included field training exercises, Min said that while such exercises had not been specifically mentioned, lawmakers from both parties concluded that they were probably included in the reference to real exercises.”

The Ministry of National Defense also told lawmakers that North Korea will likely consider testing a seventh nuclear weapon and test-launching a solid-fuel ICBM.

“We are preparing effectively for a variety of options and are carrying out a detailed review with the US authorities about the assets available for a response,” the ministry said in the briefing.

By Choi Ha-yan, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]