N Korea developing new nukes, tactical weapons and a nuke powered sub
Spending a fortuneo n defence isn't that rare - Israel spent a very high proportion of their budget for years on defence and I hate to think how much of the Ukraine's wealth is going that way right now
Administrator
N Korea seems to run a nice line in selling drugs etc to a wide variety of people as well as strange dealings in the finance market
I suppose a question now is "how much is enough" for them.
I suppose a question now is "how much is enough" for them.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
North Korea has reportedly launched an Unknown Missile heading toward the direction of Hokkaido, Japan; all citizens in the Region are urged to take get inside and go to the lowest part of buildings.
The South Korean Defense Ministry is reporting that this could be an ICBM or IRBM Launch intended to land to the East of Japan in the Pacific.
There is possibility there could be more than one Missile Launched, multiple Missile Alerts for different Regions are being broadcasted across Japanese Television.
The Missile has splashed down in the Pacific Ocean to the East of Japan, this is the first North Korean Missile fired over Japan since September of 2017.….
The South Korean Defense Ministry is reporting that this could be an ICBM or IRBM Launch intended to land to the East of Japan in the Pacific.
There is possibility there could be more than one Missile Launched, multiple Missile Alerts for different Regions are being broadcasted across Japanese Television.
The Missile has splashed down in the Pacific Ocean to the East of Japan, this is the first North Korean Missile fired over Japan since September of 2017.….
Think it has been expected - timing constrained by Uncle Xi's bean feast in Beijing
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
BREAKING: South Korea's presidential office has been placed on "24-hour standby" as North Korea is expected to conduct its seventh nuclear test at any time, officials say - Yonhap
Not willing to open a can of worms but both are now mostly paid by the US tax payer.
Cheaper than fighting the Russians elsewhere
N Korea developing new nukes, tactical weapons and a nuke powered sub
As I ponder this thread's title, and as I take a look at the discussions in re AUKUS and nuclear submarines, I wonder if NK will be able to establish the necessary industrial infrastructure to handle nuclear submarines.
I raise this question based on something I learned back in the 90's: India had been operating a Charlie class SSGN for a number of years, on lease from the Soviets, but in the end they chose not to pursue a nuclear sub capability, with that 'establish the necessary industrial base cost' being a key factor. (FWIW, I suspect that India may currently be in a better position to now do that, if they so choose).
Is NK's industrial base up for that?
As I ponder this thread's title, and as I take a look at the discussions in re AUKUS and nuclear submarines, I wonder if NK will be able to establish the necessary industrial infrastructure to handle nuclear submarines.
I raise this question based on something I learned back in the 90's: India had been operating a Charlie class SSGN for a number of years, on lease from the Soviets, but in the end they chose not to pursue a nuclear sub capability, with that 'establish the necessary industrial base cost' being a key factor. (FWIW, I suspect that India may currently be in a better position to now do that, if they so choose).
Is NK's industrial base up for that?
Lonewolf - India has two SSBN's officially in service, one fitting out and another under construction. they're small - around 6000 tonnes and carry 4-12 medium range missiles. Rumoured to be quite noisy - but that's a first generation design.
hey also leased an Akula - the "Chakra" but she was returned to Russia, apparently after an on-board explosion of a high pressure gas tank of some sort.
We don't get headlines about the Indian boats as they're not seen as a threat to the West
hey also leased an Akula - the "Chakra" but she was returned to Russia, apparently after an on-board explosion of a high pressure gas tank of some sort.
We don't get headlines about the Indian boats as they're not seen as a threat to the West
Not surprised - like all Indian procurement programmes this one faces "challenges" but they have had a plan for years and they seem to be plugging along
In The Times this afternoon.
North Korea tests rocket motor for more advanced nuclear missiles
Snippet:-
Another turn on the ratchet...
North Korea tests rocket motor for more advanced nuclear missiles
Snippet:-
North Korea has tested a solid-fuel rocket motor, according to state media, in a move that could accelerate its development of advanced missiles.
Kim Jong-un, the country’s leader, oversaw the test on Thursday, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. It published a photo of a smiling Kim at an observation point by the test site, cigarette in hand, as a huge pall of smoke rises in the background.
The launch was “the first of its kind” in the North and is a “guarantee for the development of another new type strategic weapon system”, KCNA said.
“That, my friends, is the first stage of a solid propellant ICBM [intercontinental ballistic missile],” tweeted Jeffrey Lewis, of the Middlebury Institute for International Studies in California.
North Korea has tested liquid-fuelled ICBMs before, but solid-fuelled rockets are more stable and could be launched more rapidly, reducing the time in which an opposing nation could react, experts warn. ICBMs are designed to carry nuclear warheads.
Kim Jong-un, the country’s leader, oversaw the test on Thursday, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. It published a photo of a smiling Kim at an observation point by the test site, cigarette in hand, as a huge pall of smoke rises in the background.
The launch was “the first of its kind” in the North and is a “guarantee for the development of another new type strategic weapon system”, KCNA said.
“That, my friends, is the first stage of a solid propellant ICBM [intercontinental ballistic missile],” tweeted Jeffrey Lewis, of the Middlebury Institute for International Studies in California.
North Korea has tested liquid-fuelled ICBMs before, but solid-fuelled rockets are more stable and could be launched more rapidly, reducing the time in which an opposing nation could react, experts warn. ICBMs are designed to carry nuclear warheads.
What they do is enough to let Japan seriously arm up now and add some new retaliation strike capability to its armed forces.
.
.
"What they do is enough to let Japan seriously arm up now"
"they" have been trying to get the Japanese to arm up for over 50 years - the problem is the Japanese people aren't that keen - especially about N weapons - I can't imagine why......................
"they" have been trying to get the Japanese to arm up for over 50 years - the problem is the Japanese people aren't that keen - especially about N weapons - I can't imagine why......................
Won't comment further, as I have not seen a firm policy statement 'for' yet.
I don't think that it is the Norkers who are behind the latest build up.
Not yet? Japan doubles the military spending.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...id-china-fears
https://www.theguardian.com/world/20...id-china-fears
The new thread on the japanese Military stance is very useful
In The Times.
More rocketry from NK:-
North Korea tests spy satellite from Kim Jong-un’s military ‘wish-list’
Snippet
More rocketry from NK:-
North Korea tests spy satellite from Kim Jong-un’s military ‘wish-list’
Snippet
North Korea has conducted an “important, final phase” for the development of a spy satellite that it hopes to complete by April, according to its state media.
The report comes a day after South Korea and Japan said that Pyongyang launched two ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan.
The National Aerospace Development Administration carried out the test at its Sohae satellite launching station to review its capabilities in satellite imaging, data transmission and ground control systems, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
A vehicle carrying a mock satellite, a 20m-resolution full-colour camera, two multi-spectral cameras, image transmitters and receivers, a control device and a storage battery was fired at a loft angle to an altitude of 310 miles.
“We confirmed important technical indicators such as camera operating technology in the space environment, data processing and transmission ability of the communication devices, tracking and control accuracy of the ground control system,” a spokesman for the administration said.
The report comes a day after South Korea and Japan said that Pyongyang launched two ballistic missiles toward the Sea of Japan.
The National Aerospace Development Administration carried out the test at its Sohae satellite launching station to review its capabilities in satellite imaging, data transmission and ground control systems, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
A vehicle carrying a mock satellite, a 20m-resolution full-colour camera, two multi-spectral cameras, image transmitters and receivers, a control device and a storage battery was fired at a loft angle to an altitude of 310 miles.
“We confirmed important technical indicators such as camera operating technology in the space environment, data processing and transmission ability of the communication devices, tracking and control accuracy of the ground control system,” a spokesman for the administration said.
Ecce Homo! Loquitur...
https://en.yna.co.kr/view/AEN20221226007052325
.… (more)
North Korean drones trespass across border; S. Korea sends drones in 'corresponding' step
HOENGSEONG/SEOUL, Dec. 26 (Yonhap) -- Five North Korean drones intruded across the inter-Korean border with one of them having flown over northern Seoul on Monday, officials here said, prompting South Korea to send its own unmanned vehicles into the North in a "corresponding" step.
The South's military detected multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in border areas of Gyeonggi Province from 10:25 a.m., according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The UAVs were 2 meters wide or smaller.
The vehicles flew across the Military Demarcation Line separating the two Koreas, and were spotted flying in those areas in Gimpo, Ganghwa Island and Paju, leading to temporary suspensions of civilian flights. It marks the first such intrusion in five years.
One of them flew all the way to the northern part of Seoul, while the rest hovered in and around Ganghwa Island, west of the capital, the JCS said.
The South issued warning messages, fired warning shots, and scrambled fighters, attack helicopters and other warplanes to remove them, while it remains unconfirmed whether the vehicles carry any weapons, the official said.
At some point, military choppers are said to have fired some 100 shots at the North's vehicles but failed to shoot them down.
In a corresponding step, the South sent its own manned and unmanned assets to the border areas, with some into the North to carry out surveillance and other operations, including taking photos of "key enemy military facilities," according to the JCS.
"This is a clear act of provocation by North Korea that encroached upon our territorial air," Maj. Gen. Lee Seung-o, director of operations at the JCS, told a press briefing. "Our military will respond thoroughly and sternly to such a North Korean provocation going forward."
The military also deployed a KA-1 light attack aircraft, but for an unknown reason, it crashed in Hoengseong County, about 140 kilometers east of Seoul, at 11:39 a.m. Both of the pilots escaped safely
HOENGSEONG/SEOUL, Dec. 26 (Yonhap) -- Five North Korean drones intruded across the inter-Korean border with one of them having flown over northern Seoul on Monday, officials here said, prompting South Korea to send its own unmanned vehicles into the North in a "corresponding" step.
The South's military detected multiple unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in border areas of Gyeonggi Province from 10:25 a.m., according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The UAVs were 2 meters wide or smaller.
The vehicles flew across the Military Demarcation Line separating the two Koreas, and were spotted flying in those areas in Gimpo, Ganghwa Island and Paju, leading to temporary suspensions of civilian flights. It marks the first such intrusion in five years.
One of them flew all the way to the northern part of Seoul, while the rest hovered in and around Ganghwa Island, west of the capital, the JCS said.
The South issued warning messages, fired warning shots, and scrambled fighters, attack helicopters and other warplanes to remove them, while it remains unconfirmed whether the vehicles carry any weapons, the official said.
At some point, military choppers are said to have fired some 100 shots at the North's vehicles but failed to shoot them down.
In a corresponding step, the South sent its own manned and unmanned assets to the border areas, with some into the North to carry out surveillance and other operations, including taking photos of "key enemy military facilities," according to the JCS.
"This is a clear act of provocation by North Korea that encroached upon our territorial air," Maj. Gen. Lee Seung-o, director of operations at the JCS, told a press briefing. "Our military will respond thoroughly and sternly to such a North Korean provocation going forward."
The military also deployed a KA-1 light attack aircraft, but for an unknown reason, it crashed in Hoengseong County, about 140 kilometers east of Seoul, at 11:39 a.m. Both of the pilots escaped safely