S. Korea Ballistic Missile

South Korea has test-fired a ballistic missile from a submarine, becoming the first country without nuclear weapons to develop such a capability. A Dosan Ahn Chang-ho submarine successfully carried out the underwater ejection tests last week, after similar tests were conducted from a submerged barge last month. Last week the defense ministry released its defense blueprint for 2022 to 2026, which called for developing new missiles with significantly enhanced destructive power. Seven other countries have developed submarine-launched ballistic missiles, including the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France, India, and North Korea. All of those countries also have nuclear weapons arsenals, which have typically been used to arm the missiles.

South Korea has developed increasingly powerful missiles designed to target heavily fortified bunkers and tunnels in North Korea, as well as a way to decrease its military dependence on the United States, which stations thousands of troops on the peninsula. North Korea has unveiled a series of new submarine-launched ballistic missiles in recent years and appears to be building an operational submarine designed to eventually carry them.