S. Korea to deploy homegrown bunker buster missiles this year

A test of a Korean Tactical Surface-to-Surface Missile is seen in this undated file photo provided by the Ministry of National Defense. Yonhap

South Korea will deploy homegrown bunker buster missiles capable of striking underground enemy targets to deter North Korea's evolving missile and nuclear threats, the defense ministry said Tuesday.

In its 2024 policy report, the ministry said it will first deploy the Korean Tactical Surface to Surface Missile-I (KTSSM-I), which is designed to penetrate the ground by a couple of meters to reach underground targets. It has a range of 180 kilometers with its caliber at 400 millimeters.

South Korea developed the KTSSM-I to secure precision strike capabilities against North Korean artillery pieces hidden in caves after the North's shelling of the South's northwestern border island of Yeonpyeong in 2010. The artillery shelling killed two civilians and two Marines.

The development of a long-range surface-to-air missile system will be also completed within this year as part of the plan to establish a multilayered missile defense system against the North's missile and artillery threats, according to the ministry.

South Korea and the United States will stage a joint tabletop exercise between their military and government officials under the scenario of North Korea's nuclear use and expand outdoor live drills during the annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, which is slated for August, the ministry said.

A new strategic command overseeing key assets to deter North Korean threats will be established later this year by upgrading the Joint Chiefs of Staff's Directorate of Countering Nuclear and Weapons of Mass Destruction.

The command will be led by an Air Force lieutenant general and is likely to be located within the compound of the Capital Defense Command in southern Seoul, according to military officials. (Yonhap)