N. Korea Reportedly Developing Missiles Able to Reach Continental United States

North Korea is developing at least two new ballistic missile systems that could enable it to threaten the continental United States, according to a report today in a leading military publication (see GSN, July 7).

“Both these new land and sea-based systems appreciably expand the ballistic missile threat presented by the D.P.R.K.,” says a report in Jane’s Defense Weekly, with the sea-based version being “potentially the most threatening.”

A missile launched from ships or submarines “would fundamentally alter the missile threat posed by the D.P.R.K. and could finally provide its leadership with something that it has long sought to obtain — the ability to directly threaten the continental U.S.,” the report adds, according to Agence France-Presse.

The land-based system has an estimated range of 2,500 to 4,000 kilometers, which means it could reach Hawaii and U.S. military bases on Okinawa and Guam, while the sea-launched model could be fired at least 2,500 kilometers, according to AFP.

The systems are based on the Russian R-27 submarine-launched ballistic missile, also known as the SS-N-6, according to Jane’s. The report cites a 1992 incident, in which 20 missile specialists from the Makeyev Design Bureau in Chelyabinsk, Russia, which developed the R-27, were detained as they attempted to leave for North Korea.

“Reports indicate that other groups of missile specialists successfully traveled to the D.P.R.K.,” Jane’s added.

In 1993, North Korea bought 12 decommissioned Russian submarines, supposedly for scrap metal, and although all missiles and firing systems had been removed, the submarines still had “significant elements” of launch systems, according to AFP.

“This technology, in combination with the R-27 design, provided the Korean People’s Navy with elements crucial to the subsequent development of a submarine or ship-mounted ballistic missile system,” the report says.

It remains unknown if Pyongyang has attempted to sell this system abroad, Jane's added.

However, Iran “would appear to be the ideal customer for both the land and sea-based versions, given its requirement for a system capable of striking Israel from the security of its own territory,” according to the report (Agence France-Presse/SpaceWar.com, Aug. 3).

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