Seoul, Nov 05: South Korea will buy new US surface-to-surface missiles capable of hitting most strategic targets in North Korea, military officials said today. The defence ministry said it would buy an undisclosed number of Atacms Block 1A missiles with a range of 300 kilometers, made by Lockheed Martin.
The ministry gave no further details but Yonhap news agency said South Korea would purchase 110 Atacms Block 1A missiles for deployment next year near the border with North Korea. The new missiles can hit most key strategic targets in North Korea such as its main nuclear complex at Yongbyon, 90 kilometers North of Pyongyang, Yonhap said.
The Atacms Block 1A will be the longest-range missile to be deployed here under a new military accord in 2001 under which South Korea was allowed to possess missiles with a range of up to 300 kilometers.
US military experts agree North Korea's missile development poses a major threat to regional security on top of its nuclear ambitions. But the United States has restricted South Korea's missile development to avoid an arms race on the Korean Peninsula. Bureau Report