North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised the successful 바카라static firing test바카라 at the country's northwest rocket launch facility on Thursday, the official Korean Central News Agency said.
North Korea has tested a 바카라high-thrust solid-fuel motor바카라 as a key step toward building a new strategic weapons system, state media reported Friday, as the country pushes to develop more agile and powerful intercontinental ballistic missiles designed to strike the US mainland.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised the successful 바카라static firing test바카라 at the country's northwest rocket launch facility on Thursday, the official Korean Central News Agency said.
KCNA said the test, the first of its kind in North Korea, carried 바카라strategic significance바카라 as it provided 바카라a sure sci-tech guarantee for the development of another new-type strategic weapon system.바카라 It said Kim expected the new weapon would be built 바카라in the shortest span of time.바카라
North Korea is likely referring to a solid-fuelled ICBM, which is among an array of high-tech weapons systems that Kim vowed to introduce during a major ruling Workers' Party conference early last year. Other weapons systems Kim promised to manufacture include a multi-warhead missile, underwater-launched nuclear missiles and spy satellites.
The latest motor test showed that North Korea is determined to carry out Kim's vows to develop such sophisticated weapons systems despite its pandemic-related domestic hardships and U.S.-led international pressures to curb its nuclear program. In recent months, North Korea has test-fired a barrage of nuclear-capable ballistic missiles including last month's launch of its developmental, longest-range Hwasong-17 ICBM designed to carry multiple warheads.
바카라We'd been expecting a test of this kind for a while. Large-diameter solid propellant rocket motors will enable North Korea to deploy larger submarine-launched missiles and, more importantly, more survivable and responsive intercontinental-range ballistic missiles,바카라 said Ankit Panda, an expert with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
바카라Unlike liquid propellant missiles, solid propellant missiles are fueled at the time of manufacture and can thus be released far more quickly in a war, all else being equal,바카라 Panda said. 바카라I wouldn't be surprised if they'd look to do additional testing and development of these motors before moving to flight-testing.바카라
The fuel in solid-propellant rockets is already loaded inside, which helps to shorten launch preparation times, increase the weapon's mobility and make it harder for outsiders to detect what's happening before liftoff. North Korea already has a growing arsenal of short-range, solid-fueled ballistic missiles targeting key targets in South Korea, including U.S. military bases there.
According to the KCNA report, Thursday's test was to verify specific technical features of the high-thrust solid-fuel motor based on the thrust vector controlling technology. It said the test results showed all the technical indices proved its reliability and stability.
Joseph Dempsey, research associate for defense and military analysis at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said it's difficult to assess the thrust output claimed by North Korea. But he said that 바카라what is potentially significant is the claimed thrust vector controlling technology,' with imagery suggested gimbaled exhaust nozzle which can redirect the thrust to effectively steer the missile.바카라
He said that's a much more advanced method of thrust vectoring than a previous method traditionally used on the North's solid motor missiles.
바카라Testing a gimbaled nozzle could therefore represent an important technological waypoint toward North Korea's stated goal of a solid motor ICBM,바카라 Dempsey said. 바카라However what other technical challenges remain and how far away a flight test of such a system is remains unknown.바카라