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N.Korea missiles 'drill for strike on US bases in Japan': KCNA
By Hwang Sunghee
Seoul (AFP) March 6, 2017


UN Security Council will meet Wednesday on N.Korea missile launches
United Nations, United States (AFP) March 7, 2017 - The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting Wednesday on North Korea's latest missile launches, the US mission said.

The meeting was requested by the United States and Japan after Pyongyang launched at least four ballistic missiles, three of which fell in the sea close to Japan.

Trump, Abe discussed N.Korea missile launch Monday: US official
Washington (AFP) March 6, 2017 - US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe held talks Monday on North Korea's recent provocative missile launch, a US official told AFP.

The two leaders -- who met in person when Abe visited the United States two weeks ago -- spoke by telephone after North Korea fired off four ballistic missiles in what Pyongyang called a training exercise for a strike on US bases in Japan.

Nuclear-armed North Korea's launch of four missiles on Monday was a training exercise for a strike on US bases in Japan and supervised by leader Kim Jong-Un, Pyongyang's state media said Tuesday.

Three of the four missiles came down provocatively close to US ally Japan, in waters that are part of its exclusive economic zone, representing a challenge to US President Donald Trump.

Washington and Tokyo have sought an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss the launch, likely to be scheduled for Wednesday.

Under UN resolutions, Pyongyang is barred from any use of ballistic missile technology, and the US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, said on Twitter that the world "won't allow" North Korea to continue on its "destructive path".

But six sets of UN sanctions since its first nuclear test in 2006 have failed to halt its drive for what it insists are defensive weapons.

Kim Jong-Un gave the order for the drill to start, the North's official Korea Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

"Feasting his eyes on the trails of ballistic rockets", he praised the Hwasong artillery unit that carried it out, it said.

"The four ballistic rockets launched simultaneously are so accurate that they look like acrobatic flying corps in formation, he said," the agency added, referring to Kim.

The military units involved are "tasked to strike the bases of the US imperialist aggressor forces in Japan in contingency", KCNA said.

But a US defence official told AFP that North Korea had launched five extended-range Scud missiles on Monday, with one crashing somewhere over the Korean peninsula.

Seoul and Washington last week began annual joint military exercises that always infuriate Pyongyang.

Kim Jong-Un ordered his military "to keep highly alert as required by the grim situation in which an actual war may break out anytime", KCNA reported, and to be ready to "open fire to annihilate the enemies" when ordered.

Pyongyang regularly issues threats against its enemies, and carried out two atomic tests and a series of missile launches last year, but Monday was only the second time its devices have come down in Japan's EEZ.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told parliament: "This clearly shows North Korea has entered a new stage of threat," adding: "We can never tolerate this."

The launches came ahead of a trip by new US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to the region.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also condemned them, urging Pyongyang to refrain from further "provocations".

- 'Very serious threat' -

Trump has described North Korea as a "big, big problem" and vowed to deal with the issue "very strongly".

White House spokesman Sean Spicer said Monday that North Korea poses a "very serious threat", adding the administration was taking steps to "enhance our ability to defend against North Korea's ballistic missiles".

The New York Times reported at the weekend that under former president Barack Obama the US stepped up cyber attacks against North Korea to try to sabotage its missiles before launch or just as they lift off.

Washington and Seoul have agreed to deploy a US missile defence system called THAAD to South Korea, which has infuriated China, the North's key diplomatic ally and crucial to efforts to persuade it to change its ways.

Beijing has become increasingly frustrated with Pyongyang's nuclear and missile activities, and last month announced a suspension of all coal imports from the North until the end of the year -- a crucial source of foreign currency.

Pyongyang wants to develop an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) capable of reaching the US mainland -- something Trump has vowed would not happen.

It has undoubtedly made progress in its efforts in recent years, although questions remain over its ability to master re-entry technology and miniaturise a nuclear weapon sufficiently to fit it onto a missile warhead.

South Korea said Monday that four missiles were fired from Tongchang County in North Pyongan province into the East Sea -- its name for the Sea of Japan -- travelling about 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) and reaching an altitude of 260 kilometres.

After an emergency meeting of South Korea's National Security Council, acting president Hwang Kyo-Ahn called the North's nuclear and missile provocations "immediate and real threats" to his country.

"The results of the North having a nuclear weapon in its hands will be gruesome beyond imagination," he said, citing the "brutality and recklessness" shown by the murder of Kim Jong-Nam.

Seoul has blamed Pyongyang for the killing of the half-brother of the North's leader by two women using VX nerve agent at Kuala Lumpur International Airport last month.

Malaysia has expelled the North's ambassador over the incident, who flew home Monday. Pyongyang responded by formally declaring the Malaysian envoy persona non grata.

Five questions on North Korea's missile programme
Seoul (AFP) March 6, 2017 - North Korea launched four missiles on Monday, three of them landing in Japan's exclusive economic zone -- waters extending 200 nautical miles (370 kilometres) from its coast -- drawing strong protests from Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Here are five questions on the North's missile and nuclear weapons programme, which it insists are for defensive purposes.

-- Why launch a salvo of missiles now?

Analysts say the latest missile launch is likely an act of protest against annual joint military drills by Seoul and Washington, and a renewed challenge to the US news administration.

The two allies kicked off the Foal Eagle exercises last week that always infuriate Pyongyang -- last year it fired seven ballistic missiles during them.

The North may also be trying to send a message to US President Donald Trump -- who has described Pyongyang as a "big, big problem" -- ahead of a planned trip to the region by his Secretary of State Rex Tillerson at the end of the month.

-- What went up and is this progress?

Unlike most recent launches, Monday's took off from a location close to the Sohae long-range rocket facility in Tongchang county, but analysts say they are unlikely to be tests of a new device.

The missiles travelled 1,000 kilometres (620 miles) and reached an altitude of 260 kilometres before landing in the Sea of Japan/East Sea.

The South's Joint Chiefs of Staff did not identify the missile type but said they were unlikely to be intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) capable of reaching the US mainland -- a key goal of the North's missile programme.

As the North fired four missiles, analysts note the devices could be short-range Scud missiles with a range of 500 to 700 kilometres, or mid-range Rodong missiles with a range of 1,300 to 1,500 kilometres.

Pyongyang carried out two atomic tests last year and a series of missile launches, but Monday was only the second time its devices had entered Japan's EEZ.

-- What can the US do about it?

Trump has described the North as a "big, big problem" and vowed a strong response after its missile launch in February. But his administration is beset with domestic political controversies.

Six sets of US-led UN resolutions have been imposed on the North since its first nuclear test in 2006, and have failed to prevent the regime from making progress in its weapons programme.

China is the North's key diplomatic ally and main business partner, but has become increasingly frustrated with its nuclear ambitions. It announced a suspension of coal imports last month.

But Beijing has been infuriated by Seoul and Washington's plan to deploy a US missile defence system in the South this year to shield against North Korean threats.

-- How close is North Korea to developing a working ICBM?

In his New Year address, leader Kim Jong-Un said that Pyongyang was in the "final stages" of developing an ICBM.

Analysts are divided over how close Pyongyang is to realising its full nuclear ambitions, especially as it has never successfully test-fired an ICBM.

But all agree it has made enormous strides in that direction since Kim took over as leader from his father Kim Jong-Il, who died in December 2011.

Questions remain over its ability to master the re-entry technology needed to deliver a warhead to a target as far away as the United States, and whether it has managed to miniaturise a nuclear device to the extent that it would fit on the tip of a missile.

-- What does North Korea want to happen?

North Korea considers itself a victim of US imperialism and hopes that its nuclear tests and rocket launches will help bring Washington to the negotiating table, where Pyongyang would seek to extract concessions.

Under Barack Obama, the United States ruled out engaging the North until it made a tangible commitment to de-nuclearisation, hoping that internal stresses in the isolated country would bring about change.

Critics said the policy of "strategic patience" gave Pyongyang room to push ahead with its nuclear weapons programme.

Aside from a few brief Tweets, Trump has yet to articulate his policy towards the North.

NUKEWARS
Lotte - and S. Korea - face China backlash in missile row
Beijing (AFP) March 3, 2017
South Korea's Lotte Group faces an escalating backlash in China after providing land for a US missile-defence system, amid growing concern that the row will mushroom into wider Chinese retaliation against Seoul. South Korea's fifth-largest company, Lotte signed a deal Tuesday to provide land for the US system, which was prompted by threats from North Korea. But the plan has also angered ... read more

Related Links
Learn about nuclear weapons doctrine and defense at SpaceWar.com
Learn about missile defense at SpaceWar.com
All about missiles at SpaceWar.com
Learn about the Superpowers of the 21st Century at SpaceWar.com


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