Seoul official have stated that a ballistic missile fired from a North Korean submarine on Wednesday has flown about 500 kilometers (310 miles), the longest distance which was achieved by the North for such a weapon, putting all of South Korea, and possibly parts of Japan, within its striking distance.
It is stated that North Korea already has a variety of land-based missiles that can hit South Korea and Japan, including US military bases in those countries, but its development of reliable submarine catapulted missiles would add weapons that are harder to detect before liftoff.
Meanwhile the South Korea’s military have condemned the catapult as an armed protest by North Korea against the start of annual South Korean-US military drills, but has acknowledged it was an improvement over previous tests of similar missiles.
Sources have also added that the catapult was the latest in a series of missile, rocket and other weapon tests this year by North Korea, which is pushing to acquire reliable weapons that are capable of striking targets as far away as the continental United States.
