Two Musudan missiles, capable of hitting targets 2,500 miles away, were withdrawn from a launch site in the eastern part of the country and moved to a storage facility, several US officials who chose to remain anonymous told the media. The US, which considers Korean missile program as a threat to its national security in parts of the Pacific Ocean, has confirmed that the weapons have now been relocated, a defense official told AFP. The news comes soon after Seoul and Washington kicked-off on Monday a five-day anti-submarine drill in the Yellow Sea with the presence of nuclear-powered forces, military officials told Yonhap news agency. The US mobilized a nuclear-powered Los Angeles-class submarine, Aegis destroyers and maritime surveillance aircrafts to join South Korean destroyers, submarines and maritime aircrafts. A 7,000-ton Nimitz-class nuclear powered super carrier is expected to join the training. The latest set of drills follow the completion of the two-month-long Foal Eagle exercise, which caused the recent escalation of tension between the North and South, as Pyongyang repeatedly threatened to unleash its missiles on the South and its allies. North Korea warned against the anti-submarine exercises on Saturday, calling for an end to “hostile acts and military provocations” while threatening closure of the Kaesong complex, the only joint industrial zone and the only communication channel between two Koreas.Until last month, the industrial zone employed more than 53,000 North Korean workers and hundreds of South Korean managers. The factory gradually began halting operations amid the escalations of hostility followed by the withdrawal of North Koreans working for the 123 South Korean firms in Kaesong park. South Korean officials criticized their neighbor on Monday for linking defense maneuvers to joint projects.“It is inappropriate that the North is demanding the cancellation of South Korea-US joint drills by linking it with the Kaesong Industrial Complex,” S. Korean defense ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said in a briefing.“As long as the North maintains its hostile stance, the joint drills will continue,” Kim said. The developments come as South Korean President Park Geun-hye began a six-day official trip to the US on Sunday, where he plans to focus on the North Korean missile program. Since the beginning of the two-month joint military exercise between Seoul and Washington in February, the North has issued a number of alarming threats against the South and the United States, including a threat to conduct another nuclear test and a ballistic missile launch. The escalation of threats from the North also followed introduction of stricter UN sanctions against Pyongyang following the completion of its third underground nuclear test in February. … Read More
North Korea removes missiles from launch site as tensions lower
North Korea has moved two missiles from launch sites on the country’s eastern coast, US officials said Monday, signaling lowered tensions following worries Pyongyang was ready to test-fire the weapons. The Musudan missiles had been ready to launch at any moment, but “they moved…
Listening Post – Feature – Vice: News for the ‘cool’ kids
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On track to reach US: Pentagon warns of N. Korea rocket, nuclear progress
The Thursday report, which is the first version of an annual Pentagon assessment required by law, pointed out to the launch of a satellite in December and the third nuclear test in February as the signs that North Korea’s progress towards a fully-fledged intercontinental nuclear missile.”These advances in ballistic-missile delivery systems, coupled with developments in nuclear technology… are in line with North Korea’s stated objective of being able to strike the US homeland,” the report said.The document said North Korea was one of the biggest US security challenges in the region, mentioning its record of selling weapons technology to other countries and its willingness to “undertake provocative and destabilizing behavior.”Earlier a study by Pentagon’s Defense Intelligence Agency prepared in March was leaked to the media. It assessed “with moderate confidence the North currently has nuclear weapons capable of delivery by ballistic missiles, however the reliability will be low.”The Korean Peninsula saw a period of escalated tension lately as North Korea and its adversaries traded threats and accusations.Pyongyang, which was subjected to a new round of UN sanctions in response to its third nuclear test, demanded that the US and South Korea abort their massive joint exercise. The North threatened to use its nuclear arsenals against target on its neighbor’s territory and American soil, if the drills escalate into an attack.Washington and Seoul proceeded with their drill plans, with the US deploying some of its most powerful hardware, including nuclear-capable bombers and missile destroyers. South also threatened to carry out a pre-emptive strike, if it saw preparation for a nuclear launch on North’s part.The escalation of tension happened as other regional countries, including Russia and China, called on all parties involved to refrain from provocations or any moves that could be regarded as such by the opponent.“What we need is not pumping the military muscle and using the current situation as a pretext for serving some geopolitical goals, but focusing the effort on renewing the six-party talks,” Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.The bellicose rhetoric has so far resulted in the shutdown of the Kaesong industrial zone, a rare example of cooperation between the warring neighbors, which was the legacy of the so-called sunshine policy and the period of rapprochement between Seoul and Pyongyang it allowed for. … Read More
North Korea sentences US citizen to jail
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U.S. calls on North Korea to release American ‘immediately’
The United States on Monday urged North Korea to free a US citizen on “humanitarian grounds” as it sought to pin down the charges against him ahead of a planned trial by Pyongyang. The North’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said Saturday Pae Jun-Ho, known in the US as…
North Korea loses popularity among Russians amid ongoing crisis
According to the latest poll released by the Public Opinion Foundation (FOM) only 34 percent of Russians think North Korea is friendly compared to 58 percent in early April.Russians in general are concerned by North Korea’s active military preparations and its staunch refusal to stop the development of nuclear weapons.60 percent of respondents hold that North Korea’s nuclear arms pose a threat to other countries with 28 percent having the opposite opinion and 13 percent undecided. 44 percent of those who think North Korea could use its nuclear weapons also think that Russia could become a target of such an attack.At the same time, only 17 percent of respondents estimated the probability of war as high and 39 percent claimed that in their view the start of the war in Korea was impossible regardless of any developments. 25 percent said that the probability of the war existed but was extremely low.The majority of Russians said that even if war breaks out on the Korean Peninsula their country must remain neutral, with only 8 percent saying that Moscow should offer its support to Pyongyang and 4 percent voicing support for North Korea’s supposed future opponents.Another poll conducted by the All-Russian Public Opinion Center (VTSIOM) at the same time showed that 47 percent of Russians see North Korean activities as a real threat and 39 percent saying that Pyongyang was bluffing.Russian officials also do not believe in the possibility of war between North and South Korea in the near future. Deputy secretary of Russia’s supreme security body – the Security Council – said this week that no one would profit from such war and therefore it will never happen.Yevgeniy Lukyanov told the press that North Korea’s leader Kim Chong-un was a very young politician and if he wanted his rule to be long he had to evade the unnecessary risks and threats.Meanwhile, the North Korean authorities continue apparent preparations for war, creating anti-tank barricades near the border.Last week Pyonyang demanded that South Korea and the USA removed all nuclear weapons from the region setting this as a condition for future dialogue. Both Seoul and Washington rejected this demand as absurd. … Read More
