Military experts are warning that North Korea has recently improved its weapons and military capabilities across the board and is far more dangerous than previously thought. Sputnik reports: Last week, it was reported that the country had developed an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of delivering a nuclear payload to the US mainland. Only a crucial insulation issue remained to be solved to make the device truly threatening.
South Korea have warned that North Korea may be about to launch a ballistic missile, as Japanese intelligence suggest a launch is imminent. “We are tracking any missile-related signs and maintain a high state of readiness,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff said. Japan have put its military on high alert amid signs that North Korea are making the necessary preparations for the ballistic missile launch. Msn.com reports: UN resolutions ban North Korea from any use of ballistic missile technology, although it regularly fires short-range missiles into the sea off its east coast.
While it has amounted to nothing more than mere populist posturing and jawboning, with the occasional entertaining (fabricated) clip of a submarine missile launch thrown in for good measure, North Korea's launches of ballistic missiles have succeeded in provoking anger among the international community, which has so far been unable (or unwilling) to provide an adequate response to Kim Jong Il's periodic "shows of strength", mostly for domestic consumption.
Submitted by Ian Armstrong via GlobalRiskInsights.com,
The recent failure of North Korea’s missile tests reaffirms the deficiencies of its ballistic and nuclear programs. Perversely, it also increases the risk of an imminent greater destabilizing behavior.
On April 15th, Pyongyang attempted and failed a test launch of a land-based ballistic missile that, if properly deployed, is capable of hitting a target 2,400 to 3,200 miles away.
North Korea fired a ballistic missile off the east coast of the Korean peninsula on Saturday evening, according to reports from the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff. The missile was fired from a submarine at 6:30 p.m. local time, and flew around 19 miles. CNN.com reports: One U.S. official said Saturday the launch “was provocative but not a threat to the U.S. and the missile was fired away from South Korea and Japan.” But another U.S. official noted that after previous launch attempts by Pyongyang that didn’t appear to be successful, this one seems to have gone much better.