(missile hissing)
- [Narrator] A missile that can be launched
from a train or a hypersonic one
that can evade defenses.
These are some of the newest weapons
in North Korea's arsenal,
which is already stocked with nuclear bombs
and intercontinental ballistic missiles
that could reach anywhere on the US mainland.
- So what they're investing in
is to make these missiles as creative
and surprising as possible.
- [Narrator] It's all part of North Korean leader,
Kim Jong-un's promise to build an invincible military.
And the growing number of weapons is drawing attention
from the US and its allies in the region.
- It's all part of a strategy
for North Korea to show
that despite years of sanctions
and the struggles of COVID,
that, at least in terms of military, it remains strong.
- [Narrator] So here's a rundown of some
of the latest technology in North Korea's arsenal
and what message its expansion sends to the world.
North Korean weapons tests have taken place
under all three generations of the Kim family leadership.
The country launched its first home-grown missile in 1984
but the frequency of the tests spiked under Kim Jong-un,
and included one of the largest-ever launched
by the country.
(missile whooshing)
Tests slowed during the pandemic
but in September of this year,
North Korea unveiled a new weapon
that would be the first in a quick succession of tests.
- Most recently, we've seen things
like long-rang cruise missiles.
- [Narrator] Melissa Hanham researches weapons
of mass destruction at Stanford University's Center
for International Security and Cooperation.
She's been closely watching the activity
in East Asia for 15 years.
- They're almost like a small airplane
that can turn corners,
fly through valleys and most importantly,
fly beneath and around radar.
- [Narrator] Hanham says this quality
makes a long-range cruise missile different
from a ballistic missile,
which can often carry a heavier payload
and is typically shot into space
with a rocket, then falls in a faster
but more predictable trajectory.
The cruise missile, on the other hand,
can evade detection and stealthily hit a target.
- South Korea itself has been building up
very powerful Hyunmoo cruise missiles,
some of which they have touted historically
could hit Kim Jong-un.
So in a way, North Korea's probably trying
to keep pace with the missiles coming out of South Korea.
- [Narrator] About two weeks after the launch
of the long-range cruise missile,
North Korea said it tested another new weapon.
(speaking in foreign language)
- [Melissa] It goes much, much faster
than a cruise missile.
That's why they emphasize hypersonic.
- [Narrator] Hypersonic missiles generally
can fly a mile per second,
traveling about five times the speed of sound.
- It can maneuver and then dart down
through the atmosphere again
in such a way that it would be very hard
for ballistic missile defenses
to track and then intercept.
And so it's a way of overwhelming
and beating US ballistic missile defenses.
- [Narrator] Here you can see
the hypersonic missile on display
while Kim Jong-un surveyed his expanding arsenal in October.
South Korea's military said
that the apparent hypersonic missile appears
to be in an early stage of development
but Hanham says the regime will continue working
on more nimble missiles
that can carry nuclear warheads.
- [Melissa] North Korea is thought
to only have a few warheads.
And that means that they need to find creative ways
to deliver these warheads overseas.
And Kim Jong-un has declared
that they will have a multitude of ways
of delivering these.
- [Narrator] That also means
having missile deployment systems,
and the regime's scientists have also been working
on new projects.
In September, state media released footage
of two short-range ballistic missiles being launched
from a train.
(missile hissing)
- The idea behind it
isn't really that it's a more powerful missile
or faster missile,
the idea is that it's a sneaky missile.
- [Narrator] And that's thanks
to the country's extensive railway network,
which stretches from the demilitarized zone
that separates the two Koreas
through the country's mountainous terrain
and all the way to its border with China and Russia.
- [Melissa] The reason they've chosen rail cars,
it become nearly impossible
for the US and its allies to track
which rail cars have missiles
and which ones don't.
- [Narrator] Another way to surprise rivals, go under water.
While submarine launches are not new,
Pyongyang said its latest tests in October
showcased a missile with advanced features
like gliding skip mobility.
- A submarine gives them one more creative way
of moving around and using up intelligence resources
as the United States and its allies guess
where these missiles are.
- [Narrator] But it isn't known
if North Korea fired the missile from an actual submarine
or from a submerged barge
as Pyongyang is believed to have done in earlier tests.
- There's a big difference
between testing this type of technology,
and then have it be reliably operational
or useful in a military context.
(inspirational national music)
- [Narrator] But North Koreans analysts say
the recent military muscle flexing
still sends a strong message.
- North Korea and Kim Jong-un,
they're still walking this fine line.
They're not doing something so extreme
like a nuclear test or an ICBM launch
that really would draw the wrath
of the entire world
but it has the effect
of just reminding the US and South Korea in particular
that we're not gonna stop until we get recognition
in the International world.
- [Narrator] The Biden administration has said it's willing
to hold talks any time with Pyongyang.
But in a speech at the weapons exhibit,
Kim said the US couldn't be trusted.
- So if and when talks do reemerge with South Korea
or the US, they can promise to stop doing these types
of tests in return for some type of goodie,
be it sanctions relief or humanitarian assistance
or a peace declaration.
But these weapons tests,
beyond sharpening North Korea's ability to defend itself,
and perhaps intimidate US allies in the region,
it also gives them a chip at the bargaining table.