A basic element of the Korea Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) system, the M-SAM is designed to intercept ballistic missiles at altitudes of about 20 kilometers. Its deployment comes amid "North Korea's growing missile threat," according to Yonhap.
Another element of the KAMD is the L-SAM, a long-range surface-to-air missile, which is capable of destroying enemy missiles at altitudes of 40-60 kilometers.
South Korea to decide on M-SAM's operational clearance next month — https://t.co/5fyCtU1RKC pic.twitter.com/Pc2la2jPKu
— Alert 5 (@alert5) 17 апреля 2017 г.
"It is fair to say that we only have an administrative procedure to complete the development of the M-SAM," the source said.
The system was developed by the state-run Agency for Defense Development, together with LIG Nex1, a South Korean aerospace manufacturer and defense company.
Yonhap said that South Korean authorities "initially planned to deploy the M-SAM in the early 2020s but moved up the deployment a year due to Pyongyang's escalating missile threats."
On Sunday, South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said that North Korea had attempted to launch an unidentified missile earlier that day but appears to have failed.
#SouthKorea raises budget, will fund M-SAM & L-SAM as part of #missile #defense system. https://t.co/IqbDp56hcz pic.twitter.com/8tjfI2XvtN
— Forecast Guy (@LDickersonFI) 30 августа 2016 г.
US Pacific Command, for their part, issued a statement saying that they detected what they believed was a North Korean missile launch, which occurred at 11:21 am Hawaii time on April 15.
The military said the missile "blew up almost immediately," adding that its type is yet to be identified.
All is normal in North Korea after a failed missile launch pic.twitter.com/6dU3kA7MEu
— Joel Franco (@OfficialJoelF) 16 апреля 2017 г.
Earlier this month, Yonhap reported that South Korea will increase spending on missile defense systems by 143 million dollars in 2017 due to the North Korean threat.
Separately, the deployment of elements of the US Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system have begun in South Korea in early March in response to North Korea's ballistic missile tests and despite China's strong opposition to the move.
Tensions between the two Koreas are rising after Pyongyang conducted two nuclear tests and launched more than 20 missiles in 2016.
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