In News:

South Korea is set to deploy its most powerful conventional ballistic missile, the Hyunmoo-5, by the end of this year. The move signifies a major step in Seoul’s efforts to enhance its deterrence capabilities amid escalating tensions with nuclear-armed North Korea.

Background and Development

• The Hyunmoo missile series forms the backbone of South Korea’s indigenous missile program, designed for strategic self-reliance under the constraints of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
• The concept of Hyunmoo-5 emerged after North Korea’s series of provocations in the early 2010s, including deadly border attacks. However, progress was limited by a bilateral missile agreement with the United States, which imposed payload and range restrictions to maintain stability on the Korean Peninsula.
• In 2017, following North Korea’s hydrogen bomb test, the Trump administration lifted these restrictions, enabling South Korea to pursue the development of high-payload, long-range conventional missiles such as Hyunmoo-5.

Technical Features of Hyunmoo-5

• Type: Ground-to-ground ballistic missile
• Weight: Approximately 36 tonnes
• Length: Around 16 metres
• Warhead Capacity: Can carry up to 8 tonnes of conventional explosive payload, including bunker-buster warheads capable of penetrating underground fortifications.
• Range: Estimated between 600 km and 5,000 km, depending on payload configuration.
• Purpose: Designed to neutralize hardened and deeply buried North Korean missile silos, command centres, and nuclear facilities.

Because South Korea does not possess nuclear weapons, the Hyunmoo-5 represents an attempt to achieve a “conventional balance of terror”—a deterrent parity based on precision and power rather than nuclear arms.