At 2255 GMT on 11 February, the test flight of a new “quick launch” solid fuel North Korean ballistic missile “Bukgeukseong-2” took place. It flew 500 km into the Sea of Japan before falling into it as planned. The test flight has brought condemnation other nations including Japan and USA.
This launch, along with other test flights of a new submarine launched ballistic missile system, has increased concern to North Korea’s neighbours, South Korea, Japan and China, and even USA, that North Korea will soon be in a position to make short notice ballistic missile strikes on their nations using its growing nuclear weapon stockpile.
While it is often argued that the former U.S. President George W. Bush’s worst foreign policy failure was his forced war in Iraq, analysts now think that his bigger error was his administration’s failure to prevent North Korea’s acquisition of nuclear weaponry. In effect, it “took its eye off the North Korean ball” as it instead concentrated on a war to prevent Iraq’s by-then moribund programme, and on its efforts to prevent Iran’s far less developed nuclear programme.
Now, having gained basic nuclear fission atomic bomb in the 1-10 kT class, North Korea is actively pursuing missile systems as an effective way deliver such a warhead on its enemies.
It is the threat of this which has given impetus to efforts to improve the US Navy’s anti-ballistic missile system, Standard Missile 3 (SM-3) with a new Block IIa upgrade to counter intermediate range ballistic missiles.
The development of the SM-3 has culminated in the Block IIa variant. Courtesy: Raytheon
In early February, in a test supervised by the US Navy and the US Missile Defence Agency (MDA) an Aegis radar tracking system-equipped destroyer, the USS John Paul Jones, launched an SM-3 Block IIa which successfully intercepted a ballistic missile target. Apart from the US Navy, Japan is expected to field these anti-ballistic missile interceptors with initial deployment expected in 2018.
The SM-3 Block IIa is launched on its way to intercept its target. Courtesy: Raytheon
