Integration of U.S. Cyber War Operations Strengthens North Korea's UN Ignoring Ballistic Missiles

Integration of U.S. Cyber War Operations Strengthens North Korea's UN Ignoring Ballistic Missiles

​

The United States tested integrated cyber warfare operations in Venezuela, and North Korea ignored UN sanctions and strengthened its ballistic missiles, test-firing them during the visit of the U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense to Korea.

While US Deputy Secretary of Defense Colby visited the South Korean Ministry of Defense to negotiate a ‘policy shift’ in joint defense against North Korea, North Korea launched several ballistic missiles into the East Sea.

U.S. officials said the U.S. military used cyberweapons in Venezuela to cut power, turn off radar, and jam portable radios, allowing U.S. forces to enter the country unnoticed, “part of a new effort to integrate computer warfare into real-world operations,” the New York Times reported on the 27th.

NYT said, “The Pentagon tested this method during attacks on nuclear facilities in Venezuela and Iran last year. The U.S. military has frequently used cyber weapons in individual operations, such as damaging Iran’s nuclear centrifuges or taking a Russian troll farm offline, but the Pentagon has been exploring new ways to fuse computer network warfare with its military arsenal.”

Regarding North Korea's launch of a short-range ballistic missile, Reuters reported, "It came as Washington and Seoul are discussing reorganizing the defense posture against Pyongyang," and "South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said it was launched from an area near Pyongyang to the sea off the east coast and flew about 350 km, and according to Japan, the missile reached a maximum altitude of 80 km."

Reuters continued, "Japan's coast guard separately said it detected what it believed to be a ballistic missile launched by North Korea and dropped it a few minutes later. Prime Minister Takaichi said the missile would not affect Japan. South Korea's National Security Office called on North Korea to immediately stop launching ballistic missiles, condemning it as a provocative act and a violation of UN Security Council resolutions."

Reuters said, “North Korea has in recent months test-fired short-range missiles and multiple rocket launchers that it is developing as a key part of its tactical nuclear arsenal to protect itself from threats from the United States and South Korea,” adding, “Interest in North Korea’s short-range ballistic missiles and artillery has increased after Pyongyang provided them to Russia for use in the war in Ukraine under a mutual defense agreement signed with Moscow in 2024.”

Reuters previously reported on the 23rd, “The change in the balance of responsibilities in the U.S. National Defense Strategy (NDS) is consistent with the U.S. interest in updating U.S. military deployments on the Korean Peninsula,” and “As the U.S. transitions to focus on the defense of the U.S. homeland, U.S. officials in recent years have expressed a desire to increase the possibility of operating outside the Korean Peninsula, such as defending Taiwan or deterring China’s military expansion.”

In response to the U.S. military's new efforts to integrate computer warfare into actual operations, Pentagon Chief Cyber Policy Officer Catherine E. Sutton declined to comment on Venezuela or recent operations in an interview, but told the NYT that "the military is focused on integrating cyber effects into broader military operations."

Sutton said these capabilities, when used in conjunction with traditional military forces, "successfully layer multiple effects" on the battlefield. "The integrated approach represents the future of cyber warfare."

Regarding the goal of integrated cyber operations, Sutton said, "Weave these capabilities seamlessly into broader military operations to enable more precise strikes, undermine adversaries' ability to command forces, and support U.S. forces as they maneuver on the battlefield. Because cyber is inherently an information domain, we can disrupt adversaries' decision-making processes and create windows of opportunity that existing forces can exploit. For example, by undermining adversaries' command and control and helping them achieve information superiority." explained.

Sutton is scheduled to testify at a hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the 28th regarding ways to improve the Pentagon's cyber power training.

The U.S. Congress is deliberating on the creation of a separate military unit for cyber operations, similar to the system that separated the Space Force from the Air Force and made it an independent command during the first term of the Trump administration.

“Whether or not a new unit is created, the Department of Defense is pursuing a plan to completely overhaul the way U.S. Cyber Command trains and deploys soldiers,” Secretary Sutton told the NYT.

Similar to the U.S. creation of a cyber unit, China has shown that its security agencies can penetrate deeply into U.S. computer networks, the NYT said.

China's Operation Bolt Typhoon aimed to cut off critical infrastructure near military bases to slow the U.S. response to the Pacific crisis.

NYT said, “While China has proven its independent capabilities, the United States has proven that it can use cyber effects while carrying out military operations. In Venezuela, the U.S. Cyber Command blocked the transmission tower that operated the Venezuelan military’s portable radios, took some radars offline, and cut off power.”

“These operations have made it much more difficult for Venezuelan forces to identify or engage U.S. forces moving in to arrest President Maduro,” U.S. officials told the New York Times.

On the other hand, regarding operational deficiencies, “Critics have questioned cyber weapons, citing the Venezuelan government’s position that the U.S. military directly attacked one power plant and that Venezuela’s most powerful air defense radar has never been deployed in combat,” and “Current and former U.S. officials say cyber weapons are most effective when combined with other military and intelligence operations,” and that they cannot be operated alone.

“Cyber warfare has now evolved to a higher level with the integration of motorized combat elements into attack plans,” Mark Montgomery, a retired major general who led the Cyberspace Solarium, a congressionally mandated commission, told the NYT.

“When combined with actual military operations, cyber capabilities can have a greater impact than simply targeting enemy electronic weapons,” Sutton said. “Historically, many policy discussions have been about cyber actors versus malicious cyber actors. When we talk about cyber integration, we need to think about how cyber operations can have strategic effect.”

Currently, in the U.S. military, private industry is providing high wages for software engineers and cybersecurity experts, and the military is having difficulty retaining active-duty soldiers with cybersecurity expertise.

“The traditional military career model has struggled with the unique demands of training the cyber force, and is struggling to recruit the right talent, retain the best talent, and provide the specialized training they need to succeed going forward,” said Secretary Sutton.

The NYT said, “The Pentagon is attempting to completely reorganize the Cyber Command by recruiting personnel through a career path that emphasizes ‘domain proficiency’ rather than general expertise.”

The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on the 28th that North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-un “will announce the next step plan to further strengthen the country’s nuclear war deterrence at the Workers’ Party Congress,” and that “on the 27th, he led a successful test of a large-diameter multiple rocket launch system.”

The news agency said the training “demonstrated significant improvements in the striking power, mobility and accuracy of the weapons,” adding, “Labor’s important policy is to build credible offensive capabilities and deterrence strategies to deter enemy attempts at armed conflict.”

Reuters reported that Chairman Kim said, "This test will cause extreme mental suffering and a serious threat to forces trying to induce a military conflict with us," and that "South Korea and Japan condemned the possibility of North Korea launching a short-range ballistic missile toward the waters off the east coast on the 27th. North Korea has ignored the UN's ban on the development of ballistic missiles."

Kim Jong-un did not elaborate further on his remarks about the ruling party congress expected to be held in the coming weeks. The state has not yet announced a date.

The Volt Typhoon incident was first discovered by Microsoft in May 2023 in Guam, where the U.S. military is stationed. It came to light when Microsoft revealed that it was the work of Volt Typhoon, a hacking group sponsored by the Chinese government, where major U.S. Air Force and Marine Corps bases are located.

Several agencies, including the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the National Security Agency under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, issued warnings saying, “This malware came from a state-sponsored Chinese hacking group” and “is living a natural life.”

NYT reported on July 29 of that year, “This expression means that it is avoiding detection by blending in with normal computer activity performed by authorized users.” “The Biden administration is looking for malicious computer code that it believes is hidden deep in the power grid, communications systems, and water networks that supply military bases in the United States and around the world,” U.S. military, intelligence, and national security officials said on July 29 of that year.

“The discovery of the malware has raised concerns that Chinese hackers, possibly working for the People's Liberation Army, have inserted code intended to disrupt U.S. military operations in the event of conflict, especially if Beijing moves into Taiwan in the future,” the NYT said. “The first public clues about the malware operation began in late May when Microsoft announced that it had detected mysterious computer code on communications systems in Guam and other parts of the United States, but that only limited the scope of the problems that Microsoft could see across its networks. “It was just that,” he said.

A congressional official said at the time, “This malware is essentially a ‘time bomb,’ which could give China the power to stop or delay U.S. military deployment or supply operations by cutting off power, water, and communications to U.S. military bases.”

"The U.S. military used a 'discombobulator' to disable the enemy's power," Trump told the New York Post on the 24th after arresting Venezuela's President Maduro. "I'd like to explain this weapon, but I can't," he told the New York Post on the 24th. “I didn’t,” he said.

See <Trump's removal of Maduro, CIA non-diplomatic operation, Lee Jae-myeong's 'Trump conversation help', January 26, 2026>