South Korea downplays North Korea's missile launch; 'Yet to reach hypersonic technologies'

A day after North Korea announced that it had tested "hypersonic missile", South Korea Defence Ministry on Friday said that the launched projectile was a normal ballistic Maneuverable Reentry Vehicle (MaRV) and not what the former had claimed.

Accusing North Korea of exaggeration in terms of performance, "including travel range, lateral movement," South Korea highlighted that the military "detected the missile through various assets" and subsequent rigorous assessment proved that the projectile was not a Hypersonic Glide Vehicle (HGV), the Korea Herald reported.

Seoul further claimed that the missile did not reach 700km, as was claimed by Pyongyang. Additionally, South Korea Defence Ministry also believed that the ballistic missile was a type displayed by Pyongyang in October during a weapon exhibition. The United States forces could shoot down the projectile, Seoul claimed, as reported by the Associated Press.

"Our military detected North Korea missiles various assets. Especially, VSS not courier has yet to reach the technologies for hypersonic glide vehicle," South Korean Defence Ministry said in a statement, as quoted by The Korean Herald.

Seoul also added that the MaRV did not represent any commendable technical progress in the latest missile when compared to the Hwasong-8 missile launched in September. It also underlined that the ballistic missile could be easily detected and intercepted by US intelligence. Citing technical lags, an official of Seoul also explained that the missile "cannot be called HGV because the speed drops significantly in the terminal phase".

North Korean test-fire missile aimed for domestic audience: Seoul

North Korea on Wednesday claimed to have test-fired it's second hypersonic missile. As per reports by state media, the missile made a 120km lateral movement before hitting a target at 700kms. However, South Korea refuted North Korea's claims stating that the "lateral maneuver" was an exaggeration. Clarifying the stance, an official from South Korea Defence Ministry told the Korea Herald that the "shape of the warhead is not suitable for gliding".

"The lift-to-drive ratio of hypersonic glide vehicle should exceed a certain level but the cylindrical-shaped reentry vehicle (warhead) is not appropriate for gliding because of the low lift-to-drag ratio," the official added.

When asked about the intent behind North Korea's claims of launching an HGV, the official said that the launch was for domestic audiences and could have various goals, including boosting confidence.

(Image: AP)