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The Japanese have Aegis guided missile cruisers (the only other country in the world with that system I believe) which is a fully capable boost-phase/terminal phase missile defense system. The US and Japan also both operate PAC-2/3 systems on mainland Japan (PAC being Patriot of Gulf War fame, except better now and not plagued by clock glitches that caused them to miss haha). PAC systems can do terminal kills on most ballistic missiles.
Defending against a North Korean intermediate to long range missile attack is fairly easy. Their medium and short range missiles on the other hand could easily overwhelm any local defenses in South Korea (and possibly parts of mainland Japan). That is the real threat, along with tactical rocket systems, which they have a lot of.
The North Koreans, more than anyone besides the US and Russia (and probably even more so than both of them) have integrated artillery into their battle plan. It is organic from Army Group down to the company. I am talking full on howitzer artillery organic at the company level (in the US at company level you will get 60mm mortars and even at division you are still using mortars organically, howitizers only become attached at that level). These guys mean business when it comes to the indirect fire support. Their entire plan revolves around it.
Not only do they have massive amounts of Self-Propelled guns and towed batteries, but they have an extensive network of HARTS, or Hardened ARTillery Shelters along the DMZ that are supplied from underground tunnel systems. Each of these targets requires precision attack, most likely from multiple bombs/passes. Luckily they don't move and using JDAM with a BLU-109 penetrator means you don't need target designation, but that is a LOT of targets and a LOT of sorties to destroy them all. I guarantee that we can easily get air superiority within 72 hours, but thats 72 hours where those HARTS are going to be mostly free to fire.
Dangerous games we are playing right now.
Honestly I'll be surprised if anything happens, but all it takes is a mistake when tensions get high like this and everything goes out the window.
Look back at ABLE ARCHER '83 and look how close we came to nuclear war... This isn't the same scale as that, but when people aren't talking and rhetoric begins to trounce common sense and precedence you are setting yourself up for disaster.
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