Smurf-Herder
07-04-2009, 01:24 PM
North Korea Launches 7 Missiles Off Its East Coast
By Blaine Harden
Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, July 4, 2009; 6:15 AM
TOKYO, July 4 -- Defying the United States on Independence Day, North Korea fired seven missiles on Saturday into the sea off its east coast.
The test-firings came two days after North Korea, which is being squeezed by the U.S. government and other countries for its recent nuclear test, fired four short-range missiles into the sea.
North Korea had warned ships to avoid waters near its east coast through July 10 because of military exercises, and the test-firing were widely predicted.
The South Korea military said that seven missiles had been fired intermittently from early morning on Saturday to late afternoon, but declined to say publicly what type they were.
Military officials told South Korea's Yonhap news agency that they appeared to be Scud-type missiles and described them as more dangerous than the short-range weapons fired Thursday.
Government sources in Japan and South Korea told reporters that the missiles may have been Nodongs, a mid-range Scud.
North Korea has more than 200 of these missiles, which are capable of striking nearly all of Japan. They are regarded by the Japanese government as a serious threat, and it has spent hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years buying two U.S.-made anti-missile defense systems.
Some weapons experts in the United States say that North Korea may already have the capacity to mount a small nuclear warhead on a Nodong, and there is widespread expert agreement that the North is working on it.
In Tokyo, the chief of U.S. Naval operation said Saturday the United States was ready for any North Korean missile tests. "Our ships and forces here are prepared for the tracking of the missiles and observing the activities that are going on," Adm. Gary Roughead told reporters after meeting with Japanese military officials.
South Korea said it is "fully ready to counter any North Korean threats and provocations based on strong South Korea-U.S. combined defense posture." The U.S. military has about 28,500 troops in South Korea.
Japan criticized the latest missile launch as "a serious act of provocation against the security of neighboring countries, including Japan, and is against the resolution of the U.N. Security Council."
Tension has been building in northeast Asia since early spring, when North Korea launched a long-range missile over Japan. In late May, it detonated its second nuclear bomb, which prompted a new round of U.N. sanctions and worldwide condemnation, even from the North's traditional allies, China and Russia.
To enforce the new sanctions, the Obama administration has moved in recent days to crack down on international companies suspected of selling components to North Korea that can be used in its missile or nuclear programs. The administration is also targeting banks and other institutions that may provide financing and money-transfer capabilities to the North for trade banned under the sanctions.
North Korea's recent belligerence, in the view of many analysts, is related to a succession process underway in Pyongyang. The country's leader, Kim Jong Il, is 67 years old and has appeared frail and weak since suffering a stroke last summer.
He is believed to be positioning his third son, Jong Un, 26, to take over as leader. The nuclear test, multiple missile launches and frequent threats of war, analysts say, may be a way of demonstrating that Jong Un would be a strong leader who would resist outside pressure, as his father has done.
North Korea has threatened to launch another long-range missile. But it is believed to need at least several days of preparation before a launch, and no such preparations have yet been observed, according to military officials in Seoul.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/04/AR2009070400061.html?hpid=topnews
By Blaine Harden
Washington Post Foreign Service
Saturday, July 4, 2009; 6:15 AM
TOKYO, July 4 -- Defying the United States on Independence Day, North Korea fired seven missiles on Saturday into the sea off its east coast.
The test-firings came two days after North Korea, which is being squeezed by the U.S. government and other countries for its recent nuclear test, fired four short-range missiles into the sea.
North Korea had warned ships to avoid waters near its east coast through July 10 because of military exercises, and the test-firing were widely predicted.
The South Korea military said that seven missiles had been fired intermittently from early morning on Saturday to late afternoon, but declined to say publicly what type they were.
Military officials told South Korea's Yonhap news agency that they appeared to be Scud-type missiles and described them as more dangerous than the short-range weapons fired Thursday.
Government sources in Japan and South Korea told reporters that the missiles may have been Nodongs, a mid-range Scud.
North Korea has more than 200 of these missiles, which are capable of striking nearly all of Japan. They are regarded by the Japanese government as a serious threat, and it has spent hundreds of millions of dollars in recent years buying two U.S.-made anti-missile defense systems.
Some weapons experts in the United States say that North Korea may already have the capacity to mount a small nuclear warhead on a Nodong, and there is widespread expert agreement that the North is working on it.
In Tokyo, the chief of U.S. Naval operation said Saturday the United States was ready for any North Korean missile tests. "Our ships and forces here are prepared for the tracking of the missiles and observing the activities that are going on," Adm. Gary Roughead told reporters after meeting with Japanese military officials.
South Korea said it is "fully ready to counter any North Korean threats and provocations based on strong South Korea-U.S. combined defense posture." The U.S. military has about 28,500 troops in South Korea.
Japan criticized the latest missile launch as "a serious act of provocation against the security of neighboring countries, including Japan, and is against the resolution of the U.N. Security Council."
Tension has been building in northeast Asia since early spring, when North Korea launched a long-range missile over Japan. In late May, it detonated its second nuclear bomb, which prompted a new round of U.N. sanctions and worldwide condemnation, even from the North's traditional allies, China and Russia.
To enforce the new sanctions, the Obama administration has moved in recent days to crack down on international companies suspected of selling components to North Korea that can be used in its missile or nuclear programs. The administration is also targeting banks and other institutions that may provide financing and money-transfer capabilities to the North for trade banned under the sanctions.
North Korea's recent belligerence, in the view of many analysts, is related to a succession process underway in Pyongyang. The country's leader, Kim Jong Il, is 67 years old and has appeared frail and weak since suffering a stroke last summer.
He is believed to be positioning his third son, Jong Un, 26, to take over as leader. The nuclear test, multiple missile launches and frequent threats of war, analysts say, may be a way of demonstrating that Jong Un would be a strong leader who would resist outside pressure, as his father has done.
North Korea has threatened to launch another long-range missile. But it is believed to need at least several days of preparation before a launch, and no such preparations have yet been observed, according to military officials in Seoul.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/04/AR2009070400061.html?hpid=topnews