The Indian Panorama

Tag: ICBM

  • North Korea fires suspected ICBM and 2 other missiles: Seoul

    North Korea fires suspected ICBM and 2 other missiles: Seoul

    Seoul (TIP): North Korea test-launched a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile and two shorter-range weapons into the sea on May 25, South Korea said, hours after President Joe Biden ended a trip to Asia where he reaffirmed the US commitment to defend its allies in the face of the North’s nuclear threat. If confirmed, it would be North Korea’s first ICBM launch in about two months amid stalled nuclear diplomacy with the United States. Breaking its 2018 moratorium on long-distance launches, North Korea in March claimed to have test-launched its longest-range missile as part of its development of functioning nuclear-armed missiles that can reach the American homeland.

    The launches took place as North Korea made a much-disputed claim that its first domestic covid-19 outbreak was weakening. After an emergency national security council meeting, the South Korean government said North Korea fired a suspected ICBM and two short-range ballistic missiles.

    “North Korea’s sustained provocations can only result in stronger and faster South Korea-US combined deterrence and can only deepen North Korea’s international isolation,” the South Korean government statement said.

    South Korea’s military said the suspected ICBM reached a maximum height of 540 kilometres (335 miles) while traveling 360 kilometres (223 miles) east after being fired from the North’s capital region.

    The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the North apparently lost the second missile 20 kilometres (12 miles) into flight, while the third missile flew 760 kilometres (472 miles) on an apogee of 60 kilometres (37 miles).

    A JCS statement said the US and South Korean militaries fired two surface-to-surface missiles in response to demonstrate the allies’ striking capabilities. It said the allies had detected North Korea’s preparations for the launches in advance. It said South Korea’s air force on Tuesday conducted an “elephant walk” involving 30, fully armed F-15K fighter jets parading along a runway in formation. (AP)

  • North Korean missile explodes mid-air in failed launch

    Seoul (TIP): A North Korean missile fired from its capital region exploded in mid-air in an apparent failed launch on March 16, South Korea’s military said, amid speculation that the North could soon launch its biggest long-range missile in its most significant provocation in years. Details of the missile explosion weren’t immediately known. But the launch, the 10th of its kind this year, shows North Korea is determined to press ahead on its push to modernize its weapons arsenal and pressure its rivals into making concessions amid dormant denuclearization talks. The North Korean missile blew up while it was flying at an altitude of about 20 kilometres (12.4 miles), a South Korean military official said requesting anonymity because he wasn’t publicly authorized to speak to media on the issue. He said the cause of the explosion wasn’t known. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff earlier said in a statement that the launch made from the Pyongyang region around 9.30 am apparently failed. It said South Korean and US intelligence authorities were analyzing details of the launch.

    The US Indo-Pacific Command later said that North Korea fired a ballistic missile but didn’t say whether it was a failed launch. A command statement said the launch didn’t pose an immediate threat to US territory and its allies but called on North Korea to refrain from further destabilizing acts. Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary HirokazuMatsuno told reporters that a flight of a ballistic missile has not been confirmed and that Tokyo is working with Washington and Seoul to further analyze what happened.

    Experts say past failures still have moved North Korea closer to its goal of acquiring a viable nuclear arsenal that could threaten the American homeland. The US and South Korean militaries said last week that North Korea had tested an ICBM system in two recent launches, referring to the developmental Hwasong-17 missile that North Korea unveiled during a military parade in October 2020.

    In the two recent launches on February 27 and March 5, the North Korean missiles flew medium-range distances, and experts have said North Korea could eventually perform a full-range ICBM test.

    The North has said it tested cameras and other systems for a spy satellite and released what it said were photos taken from space during one of the two tests, but it didn’t confirm what rocket or missile it launched. Observers say North Korea aims to boost its ICBM capability while trying to place its first functioning spy satellite into orbit. North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has vowed to acquire an improved ICBM and a spy satellite among an array of sophisticated weapons systems.  (AP)