August 3, 2004 :: Jane's Information Group :: News
Jane’s Defense Weekly reports that North Korea is deploying two different forms of a new missile system, with capabilities to strike both U.S military forces in Guam and Japan and also the continental United States. The new missile is believed to be based primarily upon the Russian R-27/SS-N-6 submarine launched missile, as well as some SS-N-5 technology and assistance from the Russian missile manufacturer VP Makeyev Design Bureau. The land-based mobile version of the missile has an estimated range of missile 2,500-4,000 km, and the submarine- or ship-based version some 2,500 or more.
Besides the indication of Russian proliferation, the significance of such a ship-launched missile to North Korea is the very scenario so often discussed here on Missilethreat.com: a ship-launched ballistic missile attack upon the United States. Defense Secretary Rumsfeld spoke of such a threat in October 2001, and Assistant Secretary of Defense Wolfowitz has since warned of the same. Such a prospect points to the need for a much more robust missile defense architecture, which includes space based systems. The long range midcourse interceptors to be deployed in Alaska and California would not have sufficient time to meet and destroy such a missile. A space based laser, reacting at the speed of light, is one serious alternative.
Update: August 4: The Russian Interfax news agency quotes “Admiral Eduard Baltin, ex-commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Hero of the Soviet Union,” as having “ruled out” the possibility of the transfer of Russian SS-N-6 missile technology to North Korea, and calling the reported transfers “absurd.”
Update: August 5: New York Times coverage of the story cites an unnamed official dismissing concern about the newly deployed missiles: “There is no way this can hit the mainland.” The story improperly dismisses the sea-launched version of the missile, weakly citing “doubts” that its purpose was to be launched from a freighter, and pointing out that North Korea has no submarines. Such slight of hand ignores entirely that there are two versions of the missile, one of which is designed to be launched by sea. The initial report by Jane’s Defense Weekly, cited by the New York Times, had correctly observed that “Both these new land- and sea-based systems appreciably expand the DPRK’s ballistic missile threat…The missile capable of being launched from submarines of ships is potentially the most dangerous.” (Article)
» AFP summary of Jane’s report
» Globalsecurity.org description of “No Dong B”
» More stories on: North Korea, Proliferation, Russia
» Missile details: SS-N-5, SS-N-6
