On July 30, North Korea tested two rockets near Wonsan on the country’s east coast. According to the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), the projectiles reached a 30 km altitude and 250 km range. Briefed on the weapon’s performance, North Korean chairman Kim Jong Un reportedly “expressed satisfaction” with the test and warned...
On July 25, North Korea tested two ballistic missiles from a site near Wonsan, along the country’s east coast. According to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, the missiles flew 430 and 690 kilometers respectively, landing in the Sea of Japan. Officials further stated that both missiles reached a 50 km altitude, but the weapons’...
On May 17, the U.S. State Department approved the potential sale of 94 SM-2 Block IIIB interceptors to South Korea. The deal, which also includes associated systems and technical assistance, is estimated at $313.9 million USD. On the same day, the State Department also announced its approval for the potential sale of 160 AIM-120C-7 Advanced...
On March 7, South Korea revealed that its intelligence agencies spotted movement of cargo vehicles near the Sanumdong ICBM plant in Pyongyang. South Korea’s National Intelligence Service briefed the country’s lawmakers on this activity, saying the movement is “missile-related.” Both South Korea and the United States have declined to confirm the reports of missile activity....
On November 25, a South Korean defense industry official provided updates on four weapons systems that are slated for operational deployment in the next five years. The ship-based Haegung or Sea Bow antiair missile and its multiple target illuminating radar systems reportedly achieved 90% accuracy during evaluation and is ready for deployment aboard ROK Navy...
In Summer 2018, the Republic of Korea Navy (ROKN) conducted five flight tests of the Standard Missile-2 (SM-2) interceptor, according to a Raytheon news release. In the first exercise, ROKN fired two SM-2 Block IIIA missiles, testing its semi-active radar seeker technology. Then, in a second exercise, ROKN test fired three SM-2 Block IIIB to...
On October 15, the South Korean Agency for Defense Development announced that two flight tests of the L-SAM interceptor missile scheduled for this month will be postponed to November. The tests were previously delayed from April and June launch dates to June and July followed by a second move to October. Members of the opposition...
On October 12, South Korea‘s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) announced at a parliamentary audit their plan to purchase SM-3 interceptors to counter North Korea’s ballistic missiles. A decision “for something at the SM-3 level” was made during a JCS meeting in September 2017, according to head of the JCS force-buildup planning bureau Major General...
On September 14, the U.S. State Department approved South Korea to purchase 64 Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement (MSE) Missiles; nine Multifunctional Information Distribution System Joint Tactical Radio Systems; 42 AN/AAR-54 Missile Warning Sensors; and various support equipment. The $501 million price tag includes training and support services. The approval follows the June...
On September 14, South Korea launched KSS-III (Jangbogo-III) Dosan Ahn Chang-ho, the nation’s first missile attack submarine, in the waters in near Busan. Dosan Ahn Chango-ho had been under construction since 2016 and will likely be delivered in the next two years. It is the first of nine submarines slated to be built over the...
