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North Korea launches a Hwasong-17 “new-type” ICBM from an airfield in the outskirts of Pyongyang on Nov. 18, 2022. (KCNA/Yonhap)

North Korea fired what appears to have been a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Thursday, marking the first time the country has ever tested a solid-fueled ballistic missile. Solid-fueled missiles do not require refueling and can be launched instantaneously.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that the military had detected a ballistic missile fired into the East Sea from near Pyongyang at 7:23 am on Thursday, saying that the missile “was fired at a high angle from its capital area and fell into the East Sea after a 1,000-kilometer flight.”

The missile’s peak altitude was reportedly lower than 3,000 kilometers. Military officials estimated that the missile’s range would have been around 5,000 kilometers if it had been launched at the normal angle, but after further analysis, they left open the possibility that it could have been an intercontinental ballistic missile. The US has characterized it as an ICBM.

Military officials said this could be a demonstration of a new weapon system by North Korea.

“We believe that North Korea launched a ballistic missile of the intermediate-range missile class or higher of a new system,” a Joint Chiefs official said. “We judge it to be one of the several weapons systems unveiled at the military parade.” North Korea unveiled a new solid-fuel ICBM and other weapons at a military parade in February.

The Joint Chiefs also suggest that it could be an “early-stage test for a satellite launch.” North Korea has said it hopes to complete preparations for its first military reconnaissance satellite by this month.

Notably, South Korea’s military analyzed that the missile may have used solid fuel. Unlike liquid fuel, which takes a substantial amount of time to inject into a missile, solid fuel can be loaded onto a missile like a battery, allowing for rapid launch.

The Yoon Suk-yeol administration in the South has a three-axis system to counter North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs, including the “kill chain” preemptive strike platform, the Korean Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) system, and the Korean Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR) system, but a solid-fueled missile would be difficult to detect and respond to. Solid-fueled missiles also have a faster rate of ascent than liquid-fueled missiles.

“It is possible that North Korea is trying to show off its nuclear capabilities ahead of the Day of the Sun,” referring to Kim Il-sung’s birthday on April 15, “to strengthen internal cohesion, and to show off its reaction to the expanding deterrence of South Korea and the US,” stated the Joint Chiefs. North Korea has not responded to regular calls through the inter-Korean joint liaison office and military communication lines for either coast since April 7.

The presidential office held a standing committee meeting of the National Security Council on the same day, where they “strongly condemned” the launch of the ballistic missile by North Korea and “decided to further strengthen intelligence sharing between South Korea, the US, and Japan based on the normalization of the General Security of Military Information Agreement.”

By Shin Hyeong-cheol, staff reporter; Kwon Hyuk-chul, staff reporter; Bae Ji-hyun, staff reporter

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