U.S. official says no evidence North Korea has mastered hypersonics, notes progress in its ICBM reentry tech
Published: 28 Oct. 2025, 08:50
![This photo from the Korean Central News Agency on Oct. 23 shows North Korea's missile launch the previous day. The agency said two hypersonic projectiles were launched from the Ryokpho District in Pyongyang in a northeast direction before hitting a target on Kwesang Peak in Orang County, North Hamgyong Province. [KCNA]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/10/28/352d1cf3-3c88-482d-9fa8-ea43a490d438.jpg)
This photo from the Korean Central News Agency on Oct. 23 shows North Korea's missile launch the previous day. The agency said two hypersonic projectiles were launched from the Ryokpho District in Pyongyang in a northeast direction before hitting a target on Kwesang Peak in Orang County, North Hamgyong Province. [KCNA]
A senior U.S. defense official has said there is no evidence of North Korea having mastered hypersonic weapons capabilities as he stressed the recent deployment of a new U.S. air defense system to South Korea aims "specifically" to deter the recalcitrant regime.
During an online press briefing Wednesday, the official also pointed out "progress" in the North's quest to secure reentry technology required for a fully operational intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) while voicing concerns that Russia could help the North secure the technology under a bilateral defense accord.
On the likelihood of Pyongyang conducting another nuclear test, he said that "political circumstances" would be a key determinant, noting the regime does not have any specific technical limitations on a new test, which he said could be of a "smaller-design," "smaller-yield" weapon if conducted.
The briefing took place after Pyongyang claimed that it successfully tested two hypersonic projectiles Wednesday, deepening concerns that the weapons — known to be capable of maneuvering to avoid interception — could penetrate through an anti-missile system of the South Korea-U.S. alliance.
"I don't think there's any evidence that they've mastered hypersonics yet. That is technically way different than what they have demonstrated with their previous missile launches," the official said, responding to a question from Yonhap News Agency during the briefing.
"While they have claimed hypersonic technology incorporation into previous missile tests, I don't think there's any real evidence that they've succeeded in that. They're working on it, but not there yet," he added.
Pyongyang has tested what it termed hypersonic missiles since September 2021 as developing a "hypersonic gliding flight warhead" is part of a broad weapons development plan that it unveiled during a key ruling party congress in early 2021.
"Overall, the launches are part of a multiyear comprehensive program designed to build out the effectiveness, accuracy and technical sophistication of the missile forces in order to actualize that capability, principally as a defensive option against their perception that the West is out to get them and to do a regime change," he said.
"But it's a fairly typical example of a little bit of a North Korean overstatement and overclaim with just a hint of reality within the test itself."
Regarding the North's efforts to acquire ICBM reentry technology, the official assessed that Pyongyang is making headway. The reentry technology is required to ensure a missile's warhead can withstand extremely high temperatures during reentry to Earth's atmosphere.
"I think it's fair to say that they are making progress," he said.
"But they have not yet demonstrated full missile performance through all phases of flight, including through reentry, in any substantive way that they are likely to have great confidence that their ICBM missiles and reentry vehicles would perform as designed in the event of a crisis within it."
Warning that Pyongyang will inevitably conduct another ICBM test, the official said that any notable future improvement in its overall ICBM development program could be a sign of Russia's technological support under their comprehensive strategic partnership treaty.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed the treaty during a summit in Pyongyang in June 2024, in what has been seen as a revival of the two countries' Cold War-era military alliance.
"Russia has had a pretty successful ICBM and space launch vehicle program for a number of years. So it's clearly within the realm of possibility that North Korea could benefit from that assistance," he said.
"We haven't seen it demonstrated yet, in part because North Korea hasn't done either an ICBM or an SLV test in a while now. But I think we should all watch very closely the next one, and there will be a next one. It's inevitable, and see whether it shows any substantial improvement over previous efforts."
![North Korea showcases what appears to be a new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) during a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party of Korea on Oct. 10, in this file photo carried by the Korean Central News Agency the next day. [KCNA]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/10/28/f28c0598-8fed-42f9-a3ad-6e70249e3619.jpg)
North Korea showcases what appears to be a new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) during a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party of Korea on Oct. 10, in this file photo carried by the Korean Central News Agency the next day. [KCNA]
The latest test of Pyongyang's hypersonic weapons followed the U.S. Forces Korea's introduction of an advanced air defense asset, called the Indirect Fire Protection Capability (IFPC) system. Dubbed the U.S. version of the Iron Dome, it is designed to address threats from cruise missiles and drones.
The IFPC system "specifically" targets North Korean threats, the official pointed out. But he indicated that it can also be used to counter Chinese threats, underscoring that North Korea is not the sole security threat to the South.
"I think it is fair to say that the IFPC is specifically designed against North Korea, but if it has derivative application against China because then it has multiple values for us within that. And arguably, for that matter, against Russia as well," he said.
"While China will pretend that they don't have focus or capabilities that are targeted on Korea, I think that's just utter nonsense, and they have clearly shown their willingness to apply coercive force against the Republic of Korea economically. I don't think it's much of a stretch to say they could, might be willing to do that militarily as well."
On the likelihood of Pyongyang carrying out what would be its seventh nuclear test, the official said the regime appears to have little technical restriction for the next experiment, but it could face "lots of political restriction" as full-scale nuclear testing is likely to cause international opprobrium.
"It would not surprise me if they did one tomorrow. That's not an insight that we have any particular knowledge of anything. It's just that Kim has been bold and taken risk fairly consistently since he came into power," he said.
Despite the North having already conducted six nuclear tests since 2006, it may need another test in pursuit of smaller tactical nuclear warheads to diversify its nuclear force portfolio, the official indicated.
"The first six tests all got progressively bigger, more complicated — from simple fission to potential fusion, thermonuclear capabilities," he said. "This would be an intentional step back for probably a smaller weapon design to give more operational flexibility for a theater-level strike as opposed to intercontinental or strategic strike."
Noting that North Korean leader Kim has signaled his openness to talks with the United States if Washington drops its demand for the North's denuclearization, the official said the abandoning of its nuclear capability is a "nonstarter" for Pyongyang.
"North Korea believes they have established themselves as a nuclear-capable nation, and now they are looking for the world to accept that, and to reengage with them as a recognized nuclear state," he said.
Touching on a deepening partnership among North Korea, China and Russia, the official cast it as "transactional" — an adjective that Adm. Samuel Paparo, the commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, has often used to refer to the trilateral relationship.
"It is transactional from the standpoint that they don't have aligned national interests, they don't have aligned world views, they don't have aligned unity of perspective on what they think the world should be shaped like," he said.
"They have some commonalities, but they're certainly not aligned within that. They've got historic animosities. They've got historic distrust, especially true between Russia and China, but largely true amongst all of them. So symbolically, super important, practically important, but less so within it."
Asked about the North Korean troops deployed to support Russia in its war against Ukraine, the official said that Pyongyang suffered somewhere in excess of 6,000 casualties out of a deployed force of over 14,000. He cited the latest British data, which he did not specify.
Citing the 2024 treaty between Pyongyang and Moscow, the official said that there are limitations on what North Korean troops in Russia can be used for, indicating that sending the troops into Ukraine might run afoul of the treaty.
"Specifically, it states to defend each other's territorial integrity, and Russia used that in order to commit them into the Kursk Oblast because that was internationally recognized, accepted Russian territory prior to the outbreak of the invasion," he said, referring to Russia's front-line region.
"If they were to push across the border into Ukraine, that would likely not be consistent with the defense agreement and would subject them to significant criticism."
The official tried to ease concerns about the reports that the draft of the Pentagon's new National Defense Strategy prioritizes defending the U.S. homeland and the Western Hemisphere, putting domestic and regional missions above countering threats from China and Russia.
"I would suggest that national defense and homeland security has always been the number one priority for the Department [of War] as long as I can remember. It doesn't necessarily get emphasized in the same way that it does within this one," he said.
"North Korean missile launches are a homeland defense [issue], as well as an alliance and nuclear deterrence issue. Chinese development of nuclear capabilities, long-range bombers, submarine patrols is, first and foremost, a homeland defense thing."
Yonhap
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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