South Korea displays ‘monster’ Hyunmoo-5 missile for 1st time

Seongnam: South Korea showcased its most powerful missile for the first time on Tuesday as it marked Armed Forces Day in an apparent warning against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.

Two mobile missile launchers carrying the Hyunmoo-5, a centrepiece of South Korea’s retaliation plan against a major North Korean attack, were among military equipment displayed at a ceremony at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, just south of the capital, Yonhap news agency reported.

The ground-to-ground ballistic missile, dubbed a monster for its size, had been shrouded in secrecy due to its strategic importance. It is known to be able to carry a warhead weighing about 8 tons and capable of destroying underground bunkers.

South Korea has developed a series of Hyunmoo missiles, including ballistic and cruise-type ones. It unveiled the Hyunmoo-4 during last year’s Armed Forces Day ceremony. That missile, however, can only deliver a payload of about two tons in comparison.

During this year’s ceremony, the 9-axled transporter erector launchers crawled across the tarmac, each of them carrying a canister estimated to be about 20 metres long, apparently housing the “high-power” and “high-precision” missile known to be able to target anywhere in North Korea.

In another show of force, a US B-1B heavy bomber flew over the air base, alongside two F-15K jets, in a display of the US security commitment to South Korea. North Korea earlier warned of taking a “corresponding” measure against the deployment of US strategic assets.

Some 5,000 troops and hundreds of pieces of military equipment were gathered for the ceremony, marking the 76th founding anniversary of the country’s armed forces this year.

Special operations troops showed off their infiltration skills as they jumped out of a transport aircraft over the air base, while Apache attack helicopters fired flares and demonstrated evasion manoeuvres as Richard Wagner’s “Ride of the Valkyries” blasted in the background.

The military also showed off various air assets, including the KF-21 fighter currently under development and F-35A stealth jets, while the Air Force’s Black Eagles aerobatic team performed a series of air manoeuvres.

Later in the day, the country held a military parade in downtown Seoul for the second year in a row.

During the parade, K2 tanks, K9 self-propelled howitzers and other military hardware moved in formation from Sungnyemun Gate to Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul, while various aircraft, including the Apaches and the F-35As, flew over the procession.

Spectators lined the traffic-controlled Sejongno Street running through downtown Seoul to watch the waves of troops and military equipment.

It marked the second parade of its kind under the Yoon Suk Yeol government. The country held one last year in time for Armed Forces Day for the first time since 2013.

This year’s ceremony came as North Korea has ramped up tensions in recent weeks ahead of the upcoming US election, disclosing its uranium enrichment facility, launching ballistic missiles and flying trash-carrying balloons across the border.

The defence ministry said Tuesday’s event was organised to show its “overwhelming” capabilities to powerfully retaliate against potential enemy provocations, backed by the country’s three-axis deterrence structure.

The three-pronged system refers to the Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation, an operational plan to incapacitate the North Korean leadership in a major conflict; the Kill Chain preemptive strike platform; and the Korea Air and Missile Defence system.

Officials said this year’s ceremony also mobilised an expanded lineup of assets that require the teaming of manned and unmanned operations, such as quadruped robots as well as an unmanned submarine and surface vehicle.

The country has usually marked its military founding anniversary in time for Armed Forces Day, which commemorates the service of military personnel and falls on October 1.

IANS