North Korea has advertised its distant-range hypersonic missile experiment with a solid propellant, the first time it engineers the know-how to create stealthy long-range rockets that are tricky to detect and stop. The missile launch underlines Pyongyang’s dedication to upgrading the military strength and sets a new status quo for the neighboring countries.
Like conventional supersonic weapons, hypersonic weapons possess hypersonic travel. They produce very swift speed, which is a five-time speed of sound so that these cannot be detected and tackled. A glider type of warhead service during a deep glide hypersonic missile test in North Korea in 2021. Another test was conducted in 2022, including a manoeuvrable conical reentry vehicle. The latest test was undertaken to refine missiles with the capability to strike long-range targets at very high speed and accuracy.
This provides the opportunity for the North Korean ruling power Kim Jong Un’s strategy to be fully reflected as he tries to gain the upper hand in weapons over the country. The battle for hypersonic weapons is not only generated by North Korea’s activity; the main players, like the USA, China, and Russia, are also working hard on the development of scorchers.
Spread of hypersonic weapons may create an infestation of an arms race which is not a good trend and the possibility of bypassing the current missile defense system. Such missiles can redefine the importance of military strength (force multiplication) and rearrange the traditional defence approaches, which makes it hard to provide stability in the area and in the world.
Since hypersonic competition is escalating, the international community is keeping track of all those developments to the extent they can — trying to grasp implications and potential threats in a generally complex and unstable environment.
