Gee, I wonder which crazy world leader will push the button first?
Also, interesting timing on the flight to Beijing. Summoned?
ぎちょ @donko443 1h1 hour ago
Flight JS251 from Pyongyang to Beijing
http://fr24.com/KOR251/a1c4c78
#Tu204 #airkoryo #平壌 #DPRK
North Korea News @140DPRK 21m21 minutes ago
North Korea leader says missile gives ability to attack US in Pacific - Reuters http://bit.ly/28QTRTO #northkorea #dprk
Paula Hancocks Verified account @PHancocksCNN 2m2 minutes ago
#NorthKorea envoy in Beijing says she is happy with missile launch so they can now deal whatever nuclear war US forces #DPRK
posted for fair use and discussion
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-northkorea-missile-kim-idUSKCN0Z82PB
Wed Jun 22, 2016 10:43pm EDT
Related: World, United Nations, North Korea, Aerospace & Defense
North Korea leader says missile gives ability to attack U.S. in Pacific
SEOUL | By Jack Kim
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un watches the ballistic rocket launch drill of the Strategic Force of the Korean People's Army (KPA) at an unknown location, in this undated file photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) in Pyongyang on March 11, 2016....
Reuters/File Photo
http://www.reuters.com/news/picture...s-ab?articleId=USKCN0Z82PB&slideId=1142453141
North Korea leader Kim Jong Un said after supervising the test launch of a "medium long-range strategic ballistic missile" that the country now has the capability to attack U.S. interests in the Pacific, official media reported on Thursday.
South Korean and U.S. military officials have said the North launched what appeared to be two intermediate-range missiles dubbed Musudan on Wednesday. The first of the two was considered a failure.
The second reached a high altitude in the direction of Japan before plunging into the sea about 400 km (250 miles) away, they said.
The test-fire was successful without putting the security of neighboring countries at risk, the North's KCNA news agency said, referring to the missile as a "Hwasong-10." Hwasong is Korean for Mars.
"We have the sure capability to attack in an overall and practical way the Americans in the Pacific operation theater," KCNA quoted Kim as saying.
The missile, which is fired from mobile launchers, has a design range of more than 3,000 km (1,860 miles), meaning all of Japan and the U.S. territory of Guam are potentially within reach.
Related Coverage
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Pentagon chief says North Korea test shows need for better defenses
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-n...USKCN0Z82SF?mod=related&channelName=Aerospace
South Korea and the United States condemned the launch as an unacceptable violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.
Japan's Defence Minister Gen Nakatani said the launch was an indication that North Korea's threat to Japan was intensifying.
The United Nations Security Council, which in March imposed new sanctions on the North following its fourth nuclear test in January and a long-range rocket launch in February, met at the request of the United States and Japan.
Alexis Lamek, Deputy U.N. Ambassador of France, which holds the Security Council presidency for June, said after the meeting all 15 members believed the launches were in violation of UN resolutions.
“All expressed a strong concern as well as their opposition (to) these launches,” Lamek told reporters. He said he hoped a statement condemning the move could be agreed on soon.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, speaking before the Security Council meeting, described North Korea's latest ballistic missile launches as a "brazen and irresponsible act".
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said he did not know if the test was a success but acknowledged one of the two missiles "flew for a long time".
North Korea had failed in at least five previous attempts to launch the intermediate-range missiles. South Korea said Washington and Seoul were analyzing whether the sixth missile launch was successful.
Japan and South Korea said the missile flew at a height of 1,000 km (620 miles) over a distance of 400 km (250 miles) off its east coast. Experts said it appeared North Korea had deliberately raised the angle of the launch to avoid hitting any territory of Japan.
North Korea is believed to have up to 30 Musudan missiles, according to South Korean media, which officials said were first deployed around 2007, although the North had never attempted to test-fire them until this year.
(Additional reporting by Ju-min Park in Seoul, Michelle Nichols at the United Nations and David Brunnstrom and Idrees Ali in Washington; Editing by Toni Reinhold and Paul Tait)
posted for fair use and discussion
http://www.reuters.com/article/us-n...USKCN0Z82SF?mod=related&channelName=Aerospace
Wed Jun 22, 2016 10:43pm EDT
Related: World, North Korea, Aerospace & Defense
Pentagon chief says North Korea test shows need for better defenses
U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter testifies on operations against the Islamic State, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., April 28, 2016. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst
U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter testifies on operations against the Islamic State, on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., April 28, 2016.
Reuters/Jonathan Ernst
U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter said on Wednesday he did not know if North Korea's latest missile test was a success, but it flew further than past attempts and showed the need to step up defenses in South Korea, the United States and Japan.
North Korea launched what appeared to be an intermediate-range missile on Wednesday to a high altitude in the direction of Japan before it plunged into the sea, military officials said, an advance after several test failures, including one two hours earlier.
Speaking with reporters at Fort Knox, Kentucky, Carter acknowledged that one of the two missiles fired "flew for a long time."
"I don't know whether it was successful. I don't know what the test objectives were as seen by the North Koreans," he said.
"But for whatever reason, and with whatever level of success, this shows the need for us to continue to do what we're doing, which is build these missile defenses of various ranges to protect both our South Korean allies, U.S. forces on the Korean Peninsula, Japan, and U.S. territory."
The United States and South Korea began formal discussions on deploying a new missile defense system in South Korea after North Korea conducted a fourth nuclear test in January, then launched a rocket into space as part of a program seen as a cover for intercontinental ballistic missile development.
U.S. officials said this month that plans for deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system were moving ahead and an announcement could be expected soon, in spite of objections by China.
Wednesday's first launch was the fifth unsuccessful attempt in two months to launch a missile designed to fly more than 3,000 km (1,800 miles) and could theoretically reach any part of Japan and the U.S. territory of Guam.
John Schilling, an aerospace expert who contributes to the 38 North Korea monitoring website, said it appeared North Korea had been seeking to show the full performance of the missile's propulsion system while avoiding an overflight of Japan.
But he said the successful firing of the second missile appeared a matter of luck rather than real progress.
"If they want a weapon, they will have to stand down for a year or so to figure out what went right and what went wrong, then come back with another test program at a more realistic pace," he said.
"If all they want is a propaganda win, they'll probably claim this as a complete success and go home before they have any more embarrassing failures."
(This version of the story corrects number of nuclear tests to four in paragraph 6)
(Reporting by David Brunnstrom and Idrees Ali; Editing by David Gregorio)
