PYONGYANG, North Korea
North Korea on Tuesday said it successfully tested a new tactical ballistic missile capable of carrying a "super large warhead," according to state news agency KCNA.
Pyongyang said the test, named
Hwasongpho-11 Da-4.5, was conducted with a simulated heavy warhead to verify
flight stability and accuracy. The report did not elaborate on the nature of
the simulated warhead.
This comes a day after South
Korea reported the launch of two ballistic missiles by Pyongyang,
adding that the second missile blew up over land soon after the launch.
Ballistic missiles, depending
on their design, can carry conventional high explosives as well as chemical,
biological, or nuclear munitions. North Korea is prohibited from testing
ballistic projectiles by the UN and faces several sanctions for advancing its
nuclear capabilities.
North Korea's military is set
to conduct another launch of the same type of missile in July to test the
"explosion power" of the super-large warhead, KCNA said. This is a
rare disclosure of a planned missile launch.
North Korea's report on the
missile test was likely "deception," Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff
spokesperson Colonel Lee Sung-jun told a briefing.
"Conducting a test-fire
inland is extremely rare and it is highly likely to be false to claim it has
succeeded," he said.
Seoul's military conducted
artillery drills within 5 kilometers of the Military Demarcation Line in the
Demilitarized Zone of its border with the North, an army official said in the
briefing.
These exercises were resumed
after the North launched hundreds of balloons
carrying garbage toward South Korea, leading to the
suspension of a military pact signed with Pyongyang.
South Korea has
been increasingly concerned over the North's warming relations with
Russia.
North Korea is suspected of
supplying ballistic missiles and artillery shells to Russia — an allegation
both countries deny despite their pledges
of military cooperation and a pact
of mutual military support.
No comments:
Post a Comment