South Korea's spy agency ascertaining if North's missile technology used in Iran’s attack on Israel

South Korea's top spy agency is currently determining whether North Korean military technology was used in the ballistic missiles fired in Iran's attack on Israel last week.

An Israeli military spokesperson speaks to the media Tuesday as Israel's military displays what they say is an Iranian ballistic missile, which they retrieved from the Dead Sea after Iran launched drones and missiles towards Israel last Saturday. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

South Korea's top spy agency is currently determining whether North Korean military technology was used in the ballistic missiles fired in Iran's attack on Israel last week.

"We are monitoring whether the Iranian ballistic missiles used in the Israeli attack included North Korean technology, considering past cases of cooperation between North Korea and Iran in the missile sector," Seoul's National Intelligence Service (NIS) said Wednesday.

On Saturday, Iran conducted an unprecedented attack on Israel, firing more than 300 drones and missiles.

Since North Korea and Iran have cooperated in ballistic missile technology for decades, intelligence authorities and analysts have since raised the possibility that North Korean parts or technology were used in the ballistic missiles launched in the latest airstrike.

According to a 2019 report by the Pentagon's Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), Iran's Shahab 3 medium-range liquid-fueled ballistic missile is a variant of a North Korean missile.

The DIA has described the liquid-propellant Shahab 3 as the "mainstay" of Iran's medium-range liquid-fueled ballistic missile (MRBM) force. It added Iran has modified the Shahab 3, which is based on the North Korean Nodong medium-range ballistic missile, to extend its range and effectiveness, with the longest-range variant able to reach targets at a distance of up to 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles).

Defense analysts say that Iran's Khorramshahr medium-range ballistic missiles, first tested in 2017, are also likely to have been derived from North Korea's Musudan missiles, which in turn have Soviet origins.

The United States is "incredibly concerned" about suspected nuclear and ballistic missile cooperation between North Korea and Iran, Matthew Miller, a State Department spokesperson, said Tuesday in Washington.

Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder also said in a briefing at the Defense Department that day that the United States takes "very seriously" threats posed by North Korea and Iran.

North Korea and Iran established diplomatic ties in 1973, and experts believe that secret missile cooperation between North Korea and Iran dates back to the 1980s. The two nations have a shared opposition to the United States and are subject to harsh international sanctions.

In a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, President Yoon Suk Yeol told his aides regarding Iran's attack to "maintain a firm readiness posture for the impact this may have on our security and the possibility of provocations by North Korea."

Yoon also addressed concerns that the instability in the Middle East will lead to a rise in international oil prices and adversely impact supply chains and Korea's economy.

Seoul's Defense Ministry on Tuesday underscored that the South Korean and U.S. militaries can detect and intercept missile attacks by North Korea.

On Sunday, Seoul's Foreign Ministry "strongly condemned" the large-scale attack on Israel by Iran, calling on all parties to "exercise restraint to prevent further escalation of the situation."

In January, the NIS — citing evidence — confirmed suspicions that North Korean-made weapons were being used by the militant group Hamas in its war with Israel. The NIS said Hamas fighters used an F-7 rocket-propelled grenade launcher manufactured in North Korea, despite Pyongyang's denial of any arms transactions with the militant group.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]