http://www.news.com.au/world-news/intercepted-north-korean-military-communicatio...Intercepted North Korean military communications reveal plan to launch missile
From: News Limited Network
April 05, 2013 5:53AM
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Communication intercepts reveal plans to launch missile
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View interactive North Korean timeline at end of story
INTERCEPTED military communications indicate North Korea could be planning to launch a ballistic missile which was spotted being moved by train yesterday.
CNN has reported a United States official as saying the communications revealed the launch was planned for the coming days.
The US is reportedly seeking the location of a secret North Korean launch facility or hidden launch vehicles on the nation's east coast. The location is of particular concern as any launch would likely go over the coast of Japan.
The revelation comes after South Korean officials yesterday said a medium-range "Musudan" missile had been spotted being loaded on to a train and transported towards the coast of the Sea of Japan.
The Yonhap news agency reported speculation that the missile may be fired on April 15, the birthday of the nation's founder Kim Il-sung.
The range of the "Musudan" is unclear, but some analysts have placed it at up to 4000km - enough to reach bases in Japan and possibly the United States controlled island of Guam.
A North Korean soldier watches the South Korean side at the border village of Panmunjom in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) in South Korea.
After a series of escalating threats, North Korea has moved a missile with "considerable range" to its east coast, South Korea's defense minister said yesterday. But he emphasized that the missile was not capable of reaching the United States and that there are no signs that the North is preparing for a full-scale conflict.
North Korea has been railing against US-South Korean military exercises that began in March and are to continue until the end of this month. The allies insist the exercises in South Korea are routine, but the North calls them rehearsals for an invasion and says it needs nuclear weapons to defend itself. The North has also expressed anger over tightened UN sanctions for its February nuclear test.
Analysts say the ominous warnings in recent weeks are probably efforts to provoke softer policies from South Korea, to win diplomatic talks with Washington and solidify the image of young North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Many of the threats come in the middle of the night in Asia - daytime for the US audience.
The report of the movement of the missile came hours after North Korea's military warned that it had been granted approval to attack the US using "smaller, lighter and diversified" nuclear weapons. The reference to smaller weapons could be a claim that North Korea has improved its nuclear technology, or a bluff.
The North is not believed to have mastered the technology needed to miniaturize nuclear bombs enough to mount them on long-range missiles. Nor has it demonstrated that those missiles, if it has them at all, are accurate. It also could be years before the country completes the laborious process of creating enough weaponized fuel to back up its nuclear threats.
South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said he did not know the reasons behind the North's missile movement, and that it "could be for testing or drills."
South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said he did not know the reasons behind the North's missile movement, and that it "could be for testing or drills."
He dismissed reports in Japanese media that the missile could be a KN-08, which is believed to be a long-range missile that if operable could hit the United States.
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