North Korea is advancing “faster than expected” in its missile development program, warned President Moon Jae-in on Wednesday in Germany, adding that the communist state appears to be “close to” possessing an intercontinental ballistic missile after a missile test Tuesday.

“The current level of the North’s nuclear and missile programs is a problem, but what is more troubling is its development is proceeding much faster than expected,” Moon said during a dinner meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in the German capital.

The South Korean leader is currently in the European country to meet with German leaders and attend a Group of 20 summit, slated for Friday and Saturday.



The North claimed to possess an ICBM capable of carrying a large-sized nuclear warhead after test-firing the Hwasong 14 on Tuesday. Analysts suspect the missile is capable of travelling at least 7,000 kilometers, putting Alaska and Hawaii within its range.

The Pentagon confirmed the Hwasong 14 missile was an ICBM-class, describing it as a new type that it had not seen before, with a two-stage projectile containing a re-entry vehicle being fired from a new mobile launch site.

But Moon expressed doubt over whether the North is able to fit a nuclear warhead atop the ICBM and deliver it to a target accurately. Seoul’s military had voiced similar concerns, saying that the North has not mastered the technology to shield the warhead from extreme heat when it re-enters the atmosphere.

“Despite its extended range, the missile’s accuracy and the North’s ability to mount a nuclear warhead on it are still in question. Maybe (the North) will be able to do it two or three years from now, but the speed of development is still of concern,” said Moon.

Pentagon spokesman Capt. Jeff Davis stressed the missile’s capability is still limited, noting that North Korea has yet to demonstrate a successful re-entry vehicle and the ability to fit a nuclear warhead atop the missile, according to Defense News.

“This act demonstrates that North Korea poses a threat to the United States and our allies, and we remain prepared to defend ourselves and our allies and to use the full range of capabilities at our disposal,” said Davis.

North Korea’s test-fire of Hwasong 14 caught many military analysts by surprise, as most of them had long suspected that the communist state was still several years away from launching a capable ICBM-range missile.

“We hadn’t expected this to happen this soon,” John Schilling, an aerospace engineer and a missile expert, said in his post on 38 North, a website run by the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies that specializes in North Korea.

“However, it will probably require another year or two of development before this missile can reliably and accurately hit high-value continental US targets, particularly if fired under wartime conditions,” he added.

By Bae Hyun-jung in Berlin and Yeo Jun-suk in Seoul (tellme@heraldcorp.com) (jasonyeo@heraldcorp.com)