[Inside Chodong] Why the Israel-Iran Crisis Feels Close to Home

The recent Israel-Iran crisis naturally raises a question: "What would happen if we were subjected to an airstrike like that?" Although there is currently a temporary ceasefire, this situation does not feel distant to us, given that we are always in a state of confrontation with North Korea.

This question grew stronger as I saw local photos sent by foreign media in the early stages of the crisis. Israel launched airstrikes against Iran with overwhelming military power, and Iran responded with hypersonic missiles such as the Fattah-1. The shortest distance between Israel and Iran is about 1,000 kilometers, with other countries in between. For this reason, both sides exchanged attacks through airstrikes rather than deploying ground forces.

At the time, experts estimated that at least dozens of missiles fell on Israel. Iran fired a large number of missiles, and Israel's famed Iron Dome air defense system is not easily able to intercept hypersonic missiles. However, early foreign media photos showed that the damage in Israel was not as severe as one might expect from a missile attack. Of course, there was media control, but compared to photos showing missiles raining down, there were not many images depicting actual damage. Instead, there were more photos of Israeli citizens evacuating to subway stations and other shelters in preparation for the airstrikes.

The reason for this becomes clear with a little thought: it is the distance between Israel and Iran. Among the missiles Iran fired, hypersonic missiles take about 12 minutes to reach Israel, and cruise missiles take about 2 hours. When Iran launches missiles, Israel can immediately detect the launch and evacuate its citizens, which led to less damage than expected. In this case, distance acted as a barrier.

However, our situation is different. North Korea's long-range artillery shells generally reach Seoul within 1 minute of being fired. While Israel has at least 12 minutes, we have virtually no time to take cover. Even if we launch a preemptive strike with overwhelming air power, unless we completely destroy the enemy, significant damage to Seoul would be unavoidable. In addition, North Korea may use nuclear weapons. Personally, I do not believe that North Korea is a rational state that would be able to refrain from using nuclear weapons even when cornered. North Korea is a country that would do anything to preserve its regime. Our situation is entirely different from that of Israel and Iran.

However, the earlier mention that "Israel seems to have suffered little damage" only reflects the early stage of the crisis. Later, Israel began to suffer significant damage as it ran short of interceptor missiles. Although Israel's overwhelming offensive initially suggested the conflict would end quickly, it is only with U.S. intervention that a ceasefire has been reached. Modern warfare teaches us that even if one side has overwhelming military power, if the other side has the will to resist, war can become prolonged. The war between Ukraine and Russia has already entered its fourth year.

We must learn from the Israel-Iran crisis and the Ukraine-Russia war and prepare ourselves. If we ever face an extreme situation involving military conflict with North Korea or other neighboring countries, the consequences would be far more devastating than the clashes mentioned above. Even conflicts between non-bordering countries like Israel and Iran have resulted in this level of destruction, so for us, a full-scale war would be inevitable. Incidentally, yesterday marked the 75th anniversary of the outbreak of the Korean War, a timely reminder to reconsider national security. I sincerely hope that peace will come to Israel and Iran, as well as to Ukraine and Russia.