North Korea assured on Friday that it had successfully launched its new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), a major step forward for the North Korean weapons program.
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But what is it and why has Pyongyang made this system a strategic priority?
Here is what we know:
What is a solid fuel missile?
This type of missile uses a propulsion fuel, the propellant, in a solid form. It creates the thrust force necessary for takeoff.
“This propellant is placed in the cell of the missile as soon as it is built: imagine a firework rocket, ready for use”, described to AFP Ankit Panda, an analyst based in the United States.
Conversely, liquid-fueled missiles must be supplied with fuel and an oxidizer before launch. A slower and tedious process.
Why are they more powerful?
Preparing a liquid-fuel missile “takes time, like putting gasoline in your car,” said Cheong Seong-chang, director of the Center for North Korean Studies at the Sejong Institute.
A solid fuel missile could on the contrary be compared to a “portable battery”, which grants more flexibility to the launcher.
In addition, once a missile is filled with liquid fuel, “it must be fired in a short period of time, which is not a problem with solid-fuel missiles,” adds the specialist.
However, they must be well stored and maintained. Otherwise, their quality may deteriorate, leading to a launch failure, notes Mr. Panda.
That said, solid-fuel missiles are easier to deploy than liquid-fuel ones. This makes them “very attractive for a good number of military uses”, specifies Ankit Panda.
Does North Korea have this type of missile?
Footage from North Korea’s official KCNA news agency shows the thick plume of exhaust ejected from the missile fired on Thursday. For Ankit Panda, “a solid propellant is at work”. “Everything seems to indicate a successful test of solid-fuel ICBMs,” he concludes.
But even if Pyongyang conducted this test successfully, this does not mean that the system is ready to be deployed in numbers, tempers Joseph Dempsey, researcher at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.
North Korea’s tests of liquid-fueled ICBMs, though repeated, leave questions unanswered about this type of weapon. These projectiles indeed followed a lobed trajectory, different from that expected in real conditions.
North Korea, however, seems to have different standards from other countries in terms of operationality, and can consider that its new missile is ready for use, according to Mr. Dempsey.
For the South Korean Ministry of Defense, Thursday’s test was only a preliminary test and the development of “Hwasong-18”, name chosen by North Korea, “would take more time and effort “.
“Pyongyang still faces technical hurdles and resource constraints to be able to effectively deploy the missiles it talks about in the state media,” Ehwa University professor Leif-Eric Easley told AFP.
What other countries have them?
Most armies “start with liquid-fueled missile technology but quickly progress to solid-fueled missiles, which require more advanced technology,” Cheong said.
This does not imply exclusive use of these more developed ICBMs.
“The United States only deploys solid-fueled ICBMs and Strategic Sea-to-Surface Ballistic Missiles (SLBMs), but Russia and China still use large liquid-fueled missiles,” says Ankit Panda.
As for South Korea, it has the required technology and has solid-fuel missiles in its arsenal, “but their range is limited to the Korean peninsula”, explains to AFP Kim Jong-dae, of the Institute. of North Korean Studies at Yonsei University.
Are they game changers?
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has claimed that the Hwasong-18 will “radically boost” his country’s nuclear counterattack capabilities. It cannot be ruled out that regional security will be changed, experts agree.
The South Korean self-defense plan is based on the “Kill Chain” system, which allows Seoul to carry out preemptive strikes in the event of signs of imminent attacks from the North.
The Hwasong-18, with its solid fuel, would then be more difficult to detect, although the South Korean Ministry of Defense called this fear “excessive worry”.
In the event of war, Seoul could carry out preventive strikes but “after having confirmed signs of preparation for the launch” of missiles by the North, he recalls.
“But there won’t be such signs if the North Koreans prepare solid-fuel missiles, targeting the South.”