ROK to bring forward homegrown missile defense against DPRK's threats

SEOUL -- The Republic of Korea (ROK)'s military plans to bring forward its homegrown missile defense program and preemptive strike capability against the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s nuclear and missile threats, local media reported on Tuesday.

The South Korean government and the ruling Saenuri Party agreed at a meeting to speed up the development of the Korea Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) and the Kill Chain systems as well as the Korea Massive Punishment Retaliation (KMPR) system.

The previous goal of completing the three systems by the mid-2020s was brought forward to the early 2020s, according to the agreement.

The KAMD is a project to develop its indigenous missile defense system to shoot down incoming DPRK missiles at multiple layers. The project includes the development of interceptors, including medium-range surface-to-air missiles (M-SAM) and long-range surface-to-air missiles (L-SAM) that can shoot down missiles at an altitude of less than 100 km.

The Kill Chain project aims to preemptively strike the DPRK's missile launch sites when signs of first strike are detected. The KMPR is a system to preemptively strike the DPRK's leadership and headquarters with massive missile attacks when Pyongyang's first strike signs are spotted.

Meanwhile, the governing party strongly urged the government to secure a nuclear-powered submarine earlier. In response, the government said it will consider the call carefully.

Whether the call was to develop its homegrown nuclear-powered submarine or bring such submarines from other countries is unknown. South Korea sought in the past to develop its indigenous submarine propelled by nuclear power.