N. Korea focuses on extending SLBM range

By Jun Ji-hye

North Korea will increase efforts to extend the range of its submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) to more than 2,000 kilometers in order to be capable of striking targets in the United States, experts said Monday.

The military regime is believed to have begun constructing a 3,000-ton submarine that could be equipped with at least three SLBMs, they said.

Pyongyang launched a ballistic missile from a 2,000-ton Sinpo-class submarine, Saturday. It claimed that it successfully launched the missile underwater, igniting its engine above the water’s surface and letting it fly.

The Ministry of National Defense said the test means that the Kim Jong-un regime has made progress in acquiring the technologies necessary to launch a missile from underwater.

Such technologies include “cold launch” technology — firing a missile out of the water to put it on a trajectory for hitting a designated target.

But the ministry added that the North failed to prove that the projectile’s ballistic trajectory can follow a parabolic path, citing the fact that the missile was only airborne for approximately 30 kilometers, well short of the minimum SLBM range of 300 kilometers.

Experts say it is unclear why the missile’s flight was so short this time — the regime might have used a small quantity of solid fuel, or the missile could have developed problems while gaining speed during its flight.

But Yang Uk, a senior research fellow at the Korea Defense and Security Forum, told reporters that the latest test still demonstrates that the North has made considerable progress in SLBM development.

“It can be said that the countdown to the completion of the SLBM development has begun,” he said, adding that “Poor conditions of the North’s 2,000-ton submarines may delay the development.”

Experts view a depth of at least 50 meters to be “normal” for launching a ballistic missile from a submarine, citing tests of other countries. But a 2,000-ton submarine cannot launch a missile from that depth due to its limited underwater capabilities.

The depth of Saturday’s launch was presumed to be far less, at 10-15 meters. Submarines navigating at such a depth can be easily detected, experts say.

Plus, only one SLBM can be loaded in a 2,000-ton submarine as its interior space is narrow. Experts say a submarine loading one SLBM is strategically meaningless, and at least three missiles need to be loaded.

Based on this analysis, experts expect the isolated regime to build 3,000-ton submarines and keep testing the SLBMs to extend their range.

In the meantime, the U.N. Security Council condemned the North’s SLBM test, Sunday, saying such a move contributes to Pyongyang’s capabilities to deliver nuclear weapons.

“The members of the Security Council strongly condemned the firing of a SLBM by the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” the council said in a press statement, adding that the launch is “yet another serious violation” of U.N. Council resolutions.

“The members of the Security Council emphasized that the DPRK’s development and testing of new ballistic missile capabilities, even if launches are failures, is clearly prohibited by these resolutions,” the council said.

The council also expressed concerns that “such ballistic missile activities contribute to the DPRK’s development of nuclear weapons delivery systems, and increase tension in the region and beyond,” urging U.N. members to carry out sanctions on Pyongyang.