US considers testing ICBM interceptor missile to counter North Korea
(Baonghean.vn) - On May 16, Navy Major General Jon Hill - Deputy Director of the US Missile Defense Agency announced that the agency is planning to test an interceptor missile, developed with Japan, to test the ability to intercept an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
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| The US shot down an ICBM in a test last year. Photo: AP |
Mr. Hill did not provide details about the testing time of the Standard Missile (SM)-3 Block IIA interceptor missile, citing the need to protect intelligence information.
“I don’t want to make things easy for our adversaries, so I’m not going to announce when or how we’re going to conduct the test. But we’re going to conduct it,” Hill said at an event in Washington.
According to Mr. Hill, conducting an interceptor test against an ICBM target is part of the roadmap towards putting the SM-3 Block IIA into production. Mr. Hill stated: “This is stipulated in the law. We will carry out this test plan.”
Experts say testing will take place no later than 2020.
With the threat emanating from North Korea, the SM-3 Block IIA is designed to intercept short- to medium-range ballistic missiles. Experts have mentioned the possibility of extending the range to shoot down ICBM targets.
The SM-3 Block IIA, which Japan plans to introduce in fiscal 2021, will provide a new and more advanced interceptor aimed at Aegis-equipped destroyers and the Aegis Ashore missile system, a land-based version of the Aegis ballistic missile defense system, which Tokyo decided to deploy last December./.
