North Korea launches long-range missile, signaling tech improvements

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile for the first time in almost a year Thursday, demonstrating a potential advancement in its ability to launch long-range nuclear attacks on the mainland U.S.

The launch was likely meant to meant grab American attention days ahead of the U.S. election and respond to condemnation over the North’s reported troop dispatch to Russia to support its war against Ukraine. Some experts speculated Russia might have provided technological assistance to North Korea over the launch.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observed the launch, calling it “an appropriate military action” to show North Korea’s resolve to respond to its enemies’ moves that have threatened the North’s safety, according to the North’s state media.

Kim said the enemies’ “various adventuristic military maneuvers” highlighted the importance of North Korea’s nuclear capability. He reaffirmed that North Korea will never abandon its policy of bolstering its nuclear forces.

North Korea has steadfastly argued that advancing its nuclear capabilities is its only option to cope with the expansion of U.S.-South Korean military training, though Washington and Seoul have repeatedly said they have no intention of attacking North Korea. Experts say North Korea uses its rivals’ drills as a pretext to enlarge its nuclear arsenal to wrest concessions when diplomacy resumes.

The North Korean statement came hours after its neighbors said they had detected the North’s first ICBM test since December 2023 and condemned it as a provocation that undermines international peace.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korea could have tested a new, solid-fueled long-range ballistic missile on a steep angle, an attempt to avoid neighboring countries. Missiles with built-in solid propellants are easier to move and hide and can be launched quicker than liquid-propellant weapons.

Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani told reporters the missile’s flight duration of 86 minutes and its maximum altitude of more than 7,000 kilometers (4,350 miles) exceeded corresponding data from previous North Korean missile tests.

Having a missile fly higher and for a longer duration than before means its engine thrust has improved. Given that previous ICBM tests by North Korea have already proved they can theoretically reach the U.S mainland, the latest launch was likely related to an effort to examine whether a missile can carry a bigger warhead, experts say.

Jung Chang Wook, head of the Korea Defense Study Forum think tank in Seoul, said that it’s fair to say the missile involved in Thursday’s launch could carry North Korea’s biggest and most destructive warhead. He said the launch was also likely designed to test other technological aspects that North Korea needs to master to further advance its ICBM program.

North Korea has made strides in its missile technologies in recent years, but many foreign experts believe the country has yet to acquire a functioning nuclear-armed missile that can strike the U.S. mainland. They say North Korea likely possesses short-range missiles that can deliver nuclear strikes across all of South Korea.

There have been concerns that North Korea might seek Russian help to perfect its nuclear-capable missiles in return for its alleged dispatch of thousands of troops to support Russia’s war against Ukraine. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Wednesday that North Korean troops wearing Russian uniforms and carrying Russian equipment are moving toward Ukraine, in what he called a dangerous and destabilizing development.

Lee Choon Geun, an honorary research fellow at South Korea’s Science and Technology Policy Institute, said the early results of Thursday’s launch suggested Russia might have given a key propellant component that can boost a missile’s engine thrust. He said that a higher thrust allows a missile to carry a bigger payload, fly with more stability and hit a target more accurately.

Jung said he speculates Russian experts might have given technological advices on missile launches since Russian President Vladimir Putin visited North Korea for a meeting with Kim in June.

Kwon Yong Soo, an honorary professor at South Korea’s National Defense University, said that North Korea likely tested a multiple-warhead system for an existing ICBM. “There’s no reason for North Korea to develop another new ICBM when it already has several systems with ranges of up to 10,000 to 15,000 kilometers (6,200 to 9,300 miles) that could reach any location on Earth,” Kwon said.

The North Korean confirmation of an ICBM test was unusually quick since North Korea usually describes its weapons tests a day after they occur.

“North Korea could have probably thought that its rivals could look down it after it gave away so much in military resources to Russia,” Yang Uk, an expert at South Korea’s Asan Institute Institute for Policy Studies. “The launch may have been intended as a demonstration to show what it’s capable of, regardless of troop dispatches or other movements.”

U.S. National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett called the launch “a flagrant violation” of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions that “needlessly raises tensions and risks destabilizing the security situation in the region.” Savett said the U.S. will take all necessary measures to ensure the security of the American homeland and its South Korean and Japanese allies.

South Korean military spokesperson Lee Sung Joon said the North Korean missile may have been fired from a 12-axle launch vehicle, the North’s largest mobile launch platform. The disclosure of the new launch vehicle in September had prompted speculation North Korea could be developing an ICBM that is bigger than its existing ones.

South Korea’s military intelligence agency told lawmakers Wednesday that North Korea has likely completed preparations for its seventh nuclear test as well. It said North Korea had been close to testing an ICBM.

In the past two years, Kim has used Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as a window to ramp up weapons tests and threats while also expanding military cooperation with Moscow. South Korea, the U.S. and others say North Korea has already shipped artillery, missiles and other conventional arms to replenish Russia’s dwindling weapons stockpiles.

North Korea’s possible participation in the Ukraine war would mark a serious escalation. Besides Russian nuclear and missile technologies, experts say Kim Jong Un also likely hopes for Russian help to build a reliable space-based surveillance system and modernize his country’s conventional weapons. They say Kim will likely get hundreds of millions of dollars from Russia for his soldiers’ wages if they are stationed in Russia for one year.

韩国首尔（美联社）——朝鲜周四试射了一枚洲际弹道导弹，这是近一年来首次进行此类试验，表明其对美国本土发动远程核打击的能力可能有所提升。

这次发射很可能是为了在美国大选前几天吸引美国民众的注意力，并回应外界对朝鲜据称向俄罗斯派遣军队支持其对乌克兰战争的谴责。一些专家猜测，俄罗斯可能为朝鲜此次发射提供了技术援助。

据朝鲜官方媒体报道，朝鲜领导人金正恩观摩了此次发射，称其为“适当的军事行动”，表明朝鲜决心回应威胁朝鲜安全的敌人的举动。

金正恩表示，敌方“各种冒险的军事行动”凸显了朝鲜核能力的重要性。他重申，朝鲜绝不会放弃加强核力量的政策。

朝鲜一直坚称，提升核能力是其应对美韩联合军演规模扩大的唯一选择，尽管华盛顿和首尔一再表示无意攻击朝鲜。专家指出，朝鲜利用对手的军演作为借口，扩大其核武库，以便在外交重启时以此为由获取让步。

朝鲜发表声明的几个小时前，其邻国表示，他们探测到了朝鲜自 2023 年 12 月以来的首次洲际弹道导弹试验，并谴责此举是破坏国际和平的挑衅行为。

韩国联合参谋本部表示，朝鲜可能以陡峭角度试射了一种新型固体燃料远程弹道导弹，试图避开邻国。与液体燃料导弹相比，内置固体推进剂的导弹更易于运输和隐藏，发射速度也更快。

日本防卫大臣中谷元告诉记者，该导弹的飞行时间为 86 分钟，最大飞行高度超过 7000 公里（4350 英里），超过了朝鲜此前导弹试验的相应数据。

导弹飞行高度更高、持续时间更长，意味着其发动机推力有所提升。专家表示，鉴于朝鲜此前的洲际弹道导弹试验已经证明其理论上能够打到美国本土，此次发射很可能与检验导弹能否携带更大弹头有关。

首尔韩国防务研究论坛智库负责人郑昌旭表示，可以肯定地说，周四发射的导弹可能携带了朝鲜最大、最具破坏性的弹头。他还表示，此次发射也可能是为了测试朝鲜为进一步推进其洲际弹道导弹计划所需掌握的其他技术。

近年来，朝鲜在导弹技术方面取得了长足进步，但许多外国专家认为，朝鲜尚未拥有能够打击美国本土的实用型核导弹。他们表示，朝鲜可能拥有能够对整个韩国进行核打击的短程导弹。

外界一直担忧，朝鲜可能寻求俄罗斯帮助完善其可携带核弹头的导弹，以此作为其向俄罗斯派遣数千名士兵支持其在乌克兰战争的回报。美国国防部长劳埃德·奥斯汀周三表示，身着俄式制服、携带俄式装备的朝鲜军队正向乌克兰方向移动，他称这一事态发展危险且具有破坏性。

韩国科学技术政策研究院名誉研究员李春根表示，周四发射的初步结果表明，俄罗斯可能提供了一种关键推进剂成分，可以提升导弹发动机的推力。他指出，更高的推力可以让导弹携带更大的有效载荷，飞行更稳定，并更精确地击中目标。

Jung表示，他推测自俄罗斯总统普京6月访问朝鲜与金​​正恩会晤以来，俄罗斯专家可能就导弹发射提供了技术建议。

韩国国防大学名誉教授权勇洙表示，朝鲜很可能是在测试一种现有洲际弹道导弹的多弹头系统。“朝鲜已经拥有多种射程达1万至1.5万公里（6200至9300英里）的洲际弹道导弹系统，可以打击地球上的任何地点，因此它没有理由再研发新的洲际弹道导弹。”权勇洙说道。

朝鲜对洲际弹道导弹试验的确认速度异常迅速，因为朝鲜通常会在武器试验发生一天后才公布试验结果。

韩国峨山政策研究所专家杨旭表示：“朝鲜可能认为，在向俄罗斯输送了如此多的军事资源后，其对手会轻视它。这次发射或许意在展示其能力，以表明无论是否派遣军队或其他军事行动，朝鲜都拥有这样的实力。”

美国国家安全委员会发言人肖恩·萨维特称此次发射“公然违反”了多项联合国安理会决议，并“不必要地加剧了紧张局势，有可能破坏该地区的安全局势”。萨维特表示，美国将采取一切必要措施，确保美国本土及其韩国和日本盟友的安全。

韩国军方发言人李成俊表示，朝鲜导弹可能是从其最大的移动发射平台——12轴运载车上发射的。今年9月，朝鲜公开展示了这款新型运载车，引发外界猜测朝鲜可能正在研发比现有洲际弹道导弹更大的导弹。

韩国军事情报机构周三向国会议员表示，朝鲜可能也已完成第七次核试验的准备工作。该机构称，朝鲜此前曾接近进行洲际弹道导弹试验。

过去两年，金正恩利用俄罗斯入侵乌克兰的机会，加大武器试验力度，发出更多威胁，同时扩大与莫斯科的军事合作。韩国、美国和其他国家表示，朝鲜已经向俄罗斯运送了火炮、导弹和其他常规武器，以补充俄罗斯日益减少的武器库存。

朝鲜若介入乌克兰战争，将标志着局势的严重升级。专家表示，除了俄罗斯的核武器和导弹技术外，金正恩可能还希望俄罗斯帮助其建立可靠的天基监视系统，并实现朝鲜常规武器的现代化。他们还指出，如果朝鲜军队在俄罗斯驻扎一年，金正恩很可能从俄罗斯获得数亿美元的军饷。