North Korean leader Kim Jong-un oversaw a test of a high-thrust solid-fuel engine, hailed as a development to boost strategic military capability. State media reported Sunday that the test signalled efforts to place multiple warheads on a single missile capable of reaching the U.S. mainland.
Defence experts believe North Korea is planning to use its solid-fuel rocket engines for launching intercontinental ballistic missiles. The engines enable faster missile launches as they require little preparation before ignition, according to state media.
The latest test was “part of the national defence development plan in the period of the new five-year plan,” Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, without elaborating on the date or location of the test. It was the first officially confirmed high-thrust solid-fuel engine test since September last year.
The development demonstrates North Korea’s “resolve to acquire missiles capable of hitting targets around the globe,” an analyst told AFP. Given the increased maximum thrust, this indicates its intention to possess ICBMs with global strike range, as well as the ability to overwhelm missile defence systems.
Kim said that North Korea’s defence capabilities had entered “a significant phase of change” in building up its strategic forces. Another image showed flames erupting from a ground-mounted engine, illuminating the surrounding test site in orange light.
The North has already demonstrated it has mastered the engine technology needed to launch a missile capable of reaching the U.S. mainland with a lower-thrust engine. The question is no longer whether a missile could reach the United States, but whether it could carry multiple warheads, an expert said. A multi-warhead missile can strike multiple targets with a single launch while overwhelming defence systems through simultaneous, dispersed reentry vehicles.
Kim also visited a special forces training base, inspecting drills in which photos showed soldiers wielding weapons, including an axe and a sledgehammer. The demonstration “showed the physical and technical ability they have prepared to be a match for a hundred combatants with iron fists,” KCNA said.