N. Korea’s nuclear weapons are immediately launchable, experts say

It was confirmed that North Korea had described plans to “put strategic armed forces on a high alert operation” unveiling the outcome of its fourth expanded meeting of the Workers’ Party’s 7th Central Military Commission in an English version. This clarifies the country’s intention to stress its preparedness to launch nuclear missiles, increasing the level of warning to the U.S.

The English version of the Rodong Sinmun reported on Sunday that a new principle of “putting the strategic armed forces on a high alert operation” had been suggested at the meeting. The expression‎, which literally means “a high level of turbulence” in Korean, is more articulate in English, signaling a clear message to the U.S. Some experts say that the expression‎ is similar to the concept of “LOW- Launch on Warning,” which is adopted by nuclear powers such as the US and Russia.

“It is the first time for North Korea to use the term “high alert operation” to describe nuclear forces. This refers to state where nuclear weapons can be used in a very short period of time,” explained Cho Dong-joon, a professor of Political Science and International Relations at Seoul National University. “It means that North Korea is able to immediately launch a nuclear attack anywhere in Northeast Asia, stressing that it owns leadership for nuclear deterrent,” said Ryu Sung-yeob, a senior researcher at the Korea Research Institute for Military Affairs.

“The statement implies that North Korea has determined that its solid fuel has been stabilized, hinting that it is able to launch nuclear weapons using solid fuel and lesser launch time at any time,” said Shin Jong-woo, a senior researcher at the Korea Military Security Forum.


Na-Ri Shin journari@donga.com · Kyu-Jin Shin newjin@donga.com