South Korea salvages parts of Soviet-era North Korean missile

Reuters:

SEOUL -Debris from a North Korean missile salvaged from South Korean waters were identified as parts of a Soviet-era SA-5 surface-to-air missile, South Korea’s defence ministry said on Tuesday.

Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said on Monday an underwater probe by a South Korean navy ship had recovered part of a North Korean short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) fired last week.

Military analysis, however, showed the piece, about 3 metres (3.3 yards) long and 2 metres wide, was a part of an SA-5 missile, the defence ministry said, citing its appearance and features.

The ministry strongly condemned the missile launch, calling it a breach of a 2018 inter-Korean military pact banning any activities stoking border tensions.

“This SA-5 missile launch was a clearly deliberate, intentional provocation,” it said in a statement. “The SA-5 also has characteristics of a surface-to-surface missile, and Russia has used similar missiles in Ukraine for surface-to-surface attacks.”