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The military parade in Pyongyang shortly after midnight Saturday to mark the 65th anniversary of the founding of the ruling North Korean Workers’ Party is unprecedented. The dazzling parade, which was attended by large numbers of people without misunderstanding, was organized by a pair of North Koreans.
President Kim Jong Un delivered an emotional speech on the occasion. He has wiped his eyes several times while talking about the history of his country’s struggle. But the unveiling of a new long-range intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) was the highlight of Saturday’s midnight ceremony.
Here are three key points about North Korea’s new ICBM:
Kim’s promised ‘strategic weapon’
On January 1, 2020, Kim Jong Un announced in his New Year’s speech that North Korea was developing sophisticated weapons that were “only in the hands of a few modern states.”
He said his government was in the process of building an arsenal of “strategic” nuclear weapons. Kim raised the issue of his country’s relations with the United States that day.
He said the more the United States procrastinates in its relationship with the DPRK, the more defenseless it will feel in the face of the power of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The DPRK is saving more energy than imagined and (over) stagnation will push the United States deeper into the abyss. “
The new ICBM is the nuclear weapon that Kim promised 10 months ago, targeting the United States. Such a weapon was inevitable due to the failure of the relationship development process.
The new threat to the US missile defense system
North Korea has already tested two ICBMs. Twice in 2016, they tested Huasong-14. Capable of carrying an atomic bomb, the missile is capable of hitting targets at a range of 10,000 km (6213 miles).
That means all of Western Europe and half of the continental United States are now under the cover of this Korean nuclear missile.
That same year, in 2016, North Korea tested another of its nuclear missiles, the Huasung-15, with a range of 13,000 kilometers. That means it is capable of attacking anywhere on the continent of the United States.
The new ICBMT that was unveiled on Saturday night has yet to be tested. However, it is also a liquid-fueled two-stage missile, but it is much longer and wider than the Huasong-15. Its range cannot be determined unless your instrument technology knows or tests how far it is capable of reaching the target.
But the design clearly shows North Korea’s goals and objectives: They no longer need to increase the range of their missiles. Instead, they are now trying to apply the technology to place multiple atomic bombs on a single missile.
Its success will create new headaches for the US missile defense system, as many missiles need to be fired simultaneously to avoid an atomic bomb. Now, if North Korea can put multiple warheads or bombs on a single missile, it will put more pressure on the defense system.
Immediate cause for concern
Looking at the design of the new ICBM that North Korea has demonstrated, it’s hard to imagine when it will be tested or deployed. However, the trucks in which it has been transported have raised additional concerns. One of North Korea’s biggest weaknesses in participating in a nuclear war is the lack of enough launchers.
According to US intelligence, North Korea has six launchers capable of launching a total of 12 ICBMs before counterattacking from the United States.
In 2010, North Korea secretly imported six WS51200 heavy trucks from China. It then uses hydraulic technology to turn them into launchers capable of launching missiles.
All six new missiles were transported in Saturday night’s parade on that type of truck, but this is the first time more than six of those trucks have been detected. In other words, North Korea can now build or purchase these trucks on its own.
So it is clear that despite the US sanctions, North Korea can still acquire equipment for heavy duty missile launchers, and perhaps even the launchers themselves.
North Korea’s new ICBM sends the same message to the rest of the world: Don’t underestimate its status, leadership, and the technological capabilities of its people. Source: BBC
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