North Korea has blasted its southerly neighbor’s recent submarine-missile launch, slamming Seoul’s attempt as “sloppy” and “self-comforting”, but claiming it spells further tension that will derail the peace on the peninsula.
On Monday, Jang Chang Ha, chief of North Korea’s Academy of the National Defence Science, criticized South Korea’s submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) test as being “clumsy”, and cast doubts on its logistics, stating that it did not even bear a resemblance to the weapon it claimed to be.
Instead, according to Jang, the armament looked like a South Korean short-range ground-to-ground “Hyunmoo-serial” missile, while the warhead was an imitation of India’s K-15 SLBM.
“Whatever the purpose, the hasty revelation of the picture which would definitely arouse doubt of all the military experts indicates that South Korea must have been pressed to hastily get around the world the news about its possession of SLBM with its own efforts,” the military chief explained. The military research chief suggested that Seoul’s missile is just for “bragging” and “self-comforting”.
“If what South Korea opened to [the]public and trumpeted so much is [an]SLBM, it is just in the stage of [an]elementary step”, Jang went on, claiming it has insufficient “strategic and tactical significance” to threaten its northern neighbor.
Seoul’s “ambitious efforts” to beef up its submarine-launched weaponry, however, are “a clear omen for the military tension that will be certainly aggravated on the Korean peninsula”, Jang warned.
South Korea hailed the success of the trial conducted last week, with the office of President Moon Jae-in stating that the armament was going to play a key role in the country’s ability to defend itself.
The test came just hours after North Korea fired two projectiles suspected of being ballistic missiles into the sea outside of Japan’s exclusive economic zone. Pyongyang had also tested a new long-range cruise missile that traveled some 1,500km (930 miles) a few days prior, which the Pentagon said showed that the isolated nation is a threat to “its neighbors and the international community.”
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