Iran acquires ballistic missiles from DPRK

[kashifshahzad]

Iran acquires ballistic missiles from DPRK

By Alon Ben-David JDW Correspondent
Tel Aviv

Iran has acquired medium/ intermediate-range ballistic missiles (MRBM/IRBMs) from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea - DPRK) with a range of at least 2,500 km, regional intelligence sources have confirmed to JDW. However, analysts remain puzzled over the rationale of the Iranian acquisition.

Citing a study by the German Federal Intelligence Service, the German daily newspaper Bild reported on 16 December that Iran has acquired 18 disassembled IRBMs from the DPRK. Referring to the missiles as 'BM-25' models, the newspaper said they were based on the Soviet SS-N-6 (R-27) submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM).

According to previous JDW reports, the DPRK, with the help of Russian specialists from the VP Makeyev Design Bureau in Miass, Chelyabinsk, has utilised the R-27 technology to develop two new (land-based and naval) versions of the R-27 with extended ranges. The land-based version, sometimes referred to as 'Taepo Dong X', is believed to have a range of 2,500 to 4,000 km. Fuelled with a storable liquid propellant, the new missile has greater survivability compared with the DPRK's No Dong and Hwasong families of missiles.

"Although the technology is 40 years old, the SS-N-6 SLBM is a very complicated missile, which is not easy to copy and does not align with the current Iranian efforts," Uzi Rubin, former director of Israel's Ballistic Missile Defence Organisation, told JDW.
http://www.janes.com/defence/land_forces/news/jdw/jdw051229_1_n.shtml

What can I say about this firstly Pakistan was said to be getting this tech from NK and now Iran what is all this

 

[Dr Phobus]

Its proliferation via the back door, obsolete designs dating back many years, obtained and modified with some Russian help, and with N.Korea, Pakistan and I ran sharing BM and cruiser missile technology you will see real rapid strides in BM and CM capabilities. Consider that Pakistani cruise missile design, a copy of a tomahawk, but so was "Kent" and i bet it will work just fine in time.

A side note: it can not be long before Iran are nuclear capable. With a ready stock of IRBM's and CM.

 

[kashifshahzad]

New Missile Can Reach American Cities

U.S. intelligence officials are quietly confirming that China has deployed its newest long-range missile. The Chinese army now has up to 12 Dong Feng 31 (East Wind) missiles, which can deliver nuclear warheads against America.
"China now has approximately 36 intercontinental missiles that can hit the United States – 24 older CSS-4 missiles and up to 12 new Dong Feng 31 missiles," said Col. Larry Wortzel, vice president of the Heritage Foundation.
"The Dong Feng 31 missiles can reach Alaska and the western U.S. China has also tested the Dong Feng 31 with multiple warheads," stated Col. Wortzel during a recent Washington conference on missile defense.
The new Dong Feng 31 (DF-31) missiles are attached to the 80304 Unit of the Second Artillery Corps. The 80304 Unit is headquartered in Luoyang, Henan province. Its older CSS-4 missiles can strike targets throughout the United States and Europe.
The new Dong Feng 31 missile can be armed with a single H-bomb with a yield of over 3 million tons of TNT. A single DF-31 missile armed with the huge H-bomb could destroy any major U.S. city including Los Angeles, San Francisco or Seattle.
Recent Chinese tests have shown that the DF-31 can be armed with multiple warheads. The Chinese test-fired a DF-31 armed with three small dummy nuclear warheads. The smaller warheads are based on a stolen U.S. design. Each warhead has the destructive power of 100,000 tons of TNT, or five times the size of the Hiroshima bomb.
Unlike the older Chinese CSS-4 missiles, the DF-31 is a road mobile system, carried to pre-designated launching points by large trucks. The DF-31 is also a solid fuel rocket designed to be fired very quickly. These features make the DF-31 a very hard target to track or destroy.
China developed the DF-31 during the 1990s as a replacement for its older liquid-fueled CSS-4 missile. The Second Artillery Corps is expected to accept four or five battalions, each armed with 10 to 12 DF-31 missiles, by 2008.

Iran-China
The proliferation of Chinese missile technology in both Asia and the Middle East is a growing concern. The recent DF-31 deployment by China is mirrored by further missile developments by North Korea and Iran. Iran announced this week that it intends to upgrade and improve its Shahab-3 missile. The Shahab-3 is an identical copy of the North Korean No Dong missile.
"Iran does not have any plan to build a Shahab-4. Instead we are optimizing the Shahab-3," stated Hossein Dehqan, the deputy to Iranian Defense Minister Ali Shamkhani.
The long-range No Dong missile exported by North Korea to Iran was developed by Pyongyang with extensive assistance from Beijing.
Iran purchased the Shahab using North Korean technology and No Dong parts in order to construct its force of missiles. North Korean engineers are currently working inside Iran on both its missile force as well as assisting in the Iranian effort to acquire nuclear weapons.
The Shahab-3 is capable of carrying a one-metric-ton warhead over 800 miles. Tehran announced that the Shahab-3's main target is Israel. Six Shahab-3 missiles were put on display in September during a parade in Tehran celebrating the anniversary of the Iran-Iraq war. One of the missiles carried a banner declaring "We will wipe Israel off the map."

North Korea
The regional threat from Iran is mirrored in Asia by threats from North Korea and China. The North Korean military has recently deployed over 100 No Dong missiles. The No Dong is capable of striking targets in South Korea and Japan.
North Korea has also restarted development of its long-range Tae Po Dong missile that can reach Alaska and the western United States. It is estimated that North Korea may test a Tae Po Dong missile in the next year and may have as many as three missiles ready for firing.
Both South Korea and Japan have responded to the increase in North Korean missile capabilities. South Korea recently deployed U.S.-made tactical missiles close to the DMZ as a response to the continuing increase in Pyongyang's missile force. Japan has also responded by orbiting its first military reconnaissance satellites. The second set of two imaging satellites was destroyed last month when a Japanese launch rocket failed in flight. The multibillion-dollar effort by Tokyo appears to have stalled for the moment, but U.S. sources expect Japan to seek further defenses in the face of threats from Beijing and Pyongyang.

Can someone here explain how a country like NK can develop a missile that can have that much range I think jumping from 2000km to 10000km is difficult.

Mod could you please move this thread to Military Strategy and Tactics

 

[Temoor_A]

The Shahab IV project might probably be the result of this latest tech acquired by NK!

But it is not that whole missile parts are being exported but more like information on technical aspects of developing IRBM might have been obtained from NK along with some useful assets.

Shahab III is more appropriately based on No-Dong MRBM of NK!

But still it will take a couple of years before Shahab IV becomes operational.