N. Korea seen preparing for another ICBM test By Kim Rahn
.jpg)
The Ministry of National Defense said Monday it had detected signs of North Korea preparing for the launch of another missile, presumed to be an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). During a National Assembly session, ministry officials said the North may fire an ICBM again to show off a weapon allegedly capable of attacking the U.S. mainland.
The Ministry of National Defense said Monday it had detected signs of North Korea preparing for the launch of another missile, presumed to be an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).
During a National Assembly session, ministry officials said the North may fire an ICBM again to show off a weapon allegedly capable of attacking the U.S. mainland.
After conducting its sixth nuclear test Sunday, Pyongyang claimed it had developed a hydrogen bomb that can be mounted on its new ICBM. North Korea has test-fired two such missiles so far, July 4 and 28, claiming the long-range missile can strike the U.S. mainland.
The ministry also estimated the explosion yield of the nuclear test at about 50 kilotons, five times stronger than the North’s fifth test about a year ago. It suspected North Korea used various nuclear materials this time _ for the first and second tests, it presumed the North used plutonium and for the third to fifth, plutonium and highly-enriched uranium.
The ministry also said it is consulting with the U.S. about deploying a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier and strategic bombers here. “We asked the U.S. to regularly deploy assets of extended deterrence such as aircraft carriers and nuclear-powered submarines,” Defense Minister Song Young-moo said.
He said participants of the National Security Council presided over by President Moon Jae-in right after the test Sunday agreed that it was time to focus on pressure rather than the peace overture proposed in Moon’s Berlin speech in July.
Live-fire drill targets nuclear test site
In a direct response to the nuclear test, the military conducted a live-fire missile drill Monday, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS).
It set the range of the simulated targets to that of Punggye-ri in North Hamgyong Province, the North’s nuclear test site, the first exercise with real-distance targeting of the site.
“We conducted a combined live-fire exercise early in the morning, as a strong warning following Pyongyang’s sixth nuclear test,” the JCS said in a press release.
The military used a Hyunmoo-2A surface-to-surface missile and the F-15K’s SLAM-ER air-launched cruise missile, which hit the designated targets in the East Sea accurately.
“The missiles were fired at targets which were set in accordance with the distance to the nuclear test site in Punggye-ri,” JCS spokesman Roh Jae-cheon said. “We showed the capability of pinpoint strikes at the origin of provocations and the enemy’s leadership.”
The Hyunmoo-2A missile’s range is about 300 kilometers, while Punggye-ri is about 280 kilometers away from Sokcho, Gangwon Province, where the exercise was conducted.
The weight of the missile’s warhead was 1.5 tons, which can destroy underground bunkers in North Korea, according to the JCS. The SLAM-ER, with the capability of pinpoint strikes, can put all of North Korea within range if launched near the Military Demarcation Line.
The South Korean and the U.S. military authorities also plan to stage a joint show-of-force soon.
Talks with Abe
In the meantime, President Moon and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe called for a whole new level of countermeasures against North Korea’s nuclear ambitions.
During a 20-minute phone conversation, the two leaders expressed serious concerns about the power of the North’s hydrogen bomb and the possible use of it on an ICBM as Pyongyang has threatened.
“They agreed that the two nations and the international community need to cooperate on the strongest pressure and sanctions,” presidential spokesman Park Soo-hyun said. “They urged a whole new level of practical and strongest-ever measures, which will put real pressure on Pyongyang.”
Moon and Abe will first seek a new round of sanctions by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), which can make the North return to negotiations, Park said.
Besides the heads of the states, top nuclear envoys of South Korea, Japan and the U.S. agreed on stern countermeasures against the North’s nuclear threats.
Kim Hong-kyun, the special representative for the Korean Peninsula peace and security affairs at the foreign ministry, had respective phone calls with his Japanese and U.S. counterparts, Kenji Kanasugi and Joseph Yun, Sunday evening, according to the foreign ministry, and talked about strongest possible actions against Pyongyang.
Seoul and Washington also decided to hold an annual meeting of director-level officials from foreign and defense ministries as part of the Extended Deterrence Strategy and Consultation Group (EDSCG), which was launched last October.
The EDSCG will operate on two tracks _ an annual working-level session led by director-level officials and a biannual executive session led by vice minister-level officials. Every two years when the executive session is not held, a so-called 2+2 meeting of foreign and defense ministers will take place, according to a joint press release from the two countries.