North Korea's diversifying missile arsenal complicates South's defense
North Korea is displaying an increasingly diverse missile arsenal this year, firing from different platforms — on land, aboard warships and, according to Pyongyang, underwater from a submarine — while testing weapons designed to carry heavier warheads, maneuver to evade interception and inflict damage over wider areas. The frequency of missile tests has also increased, with 16 ballistic missile launches recorded through Oct. 12, which exceeds the six recorded in all of 2025 and 12 in 2024. But what's more threatening than the frequency of ballistic missiles is diversification, with cruise missile tests added on seven occasions through Oct. 14, involving land-based launchers, destroyers and, purportedly, a submarine. The expanding arsenal gives North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s military more options to approach targets from different directions and coordinate strikes, placing greater demands on South Korean and U.S. defenses even as questions remain over Pyongyang's technological claims. Widening range of weapons This year's ballistic launches began near Pyongyang on Jan. 4 with susp
_2026_10_24_10_42_55.jpg)
