Korean Sota Osa II ?

[ctg]

A satellite photograph taken outside North Korea’s largest port in late 2020 shows a small cargo ship carrying what looks to be a missile shaped object on its deck.

Measuring approximately 10 meters in the length, the seemingly cylindrical white object also seems to have a pointed tip and guidance fins at the base.

But without additional and higher resolution satellite images, it is difficult to make definitve conclusions. The vessel’s cargo may have also been part of a broader trend which saw North Korea import other sanctioned industrial equipment and machinery on small, unregistered, and difficult to trace ships.

Suspicious Cargo at Nampho: North Korean Smuggling Goes Domestic | Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative

A satellite photograph taken outside North Korea’s largest port in late 2020 shows a small cargo ship carrying what looks to be a missile shaped object on its deck. Measuring approximately 10 meters in the length, the seemingly cylindrical white object also seems to have a pointed tip and...

amti.csis.org

 

[ctg]

 

[Teräsmies]

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff and Defense Ministry said the ICBM missile fired from the Sunan area near capital Pyongyang traveled 1,080 kilometers (671 miles) while reaching a maximum altitude of over 6,200 kilometers (3,852 miles). This indicated the missile was fired on a higher-than-usual angle to avoid reaching the territorial waters of Japan.

Dialing up pressure, North Korea tests long-range missile

North Korea has fired possibly its biggest intercontinental ballistic missile toward the sea, raising the ante in a pressure campaign aimed at forcing the US and other rivals to accept it as a nuclear power and remove crippling sanctions.

apnews.com

Testin korkeuden perusteella kyseessä oli uusi manntertenvälinen.

 

[Teräsmies]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1507035527656005633

 

[ctg]

North Korea has confirmed that it tested a new, powerful type of intercontinental ballistic missile, marking an end to a self-imposed moratorium on long-range testing in place since 2017 and drawing international condemnation.

State media said on Friday that leader Kim Jong-un had directly guided the test of the Hwasong-17 – a “new type” of intercontinental ballistic missile that is North Korea’s biggest to date. He said the North would continue to develop a “nuclear war deterrent” while preparing for a “long-standing confrontation” with the US.

The missile reportedly flew for 1,090km (681 miles) to a maximum altitude of 6,248.5km (3,905 miles) and hit a target in the sea.

Kim ordered the test because of the “daily-escalating military tension in and around the Korean peninsula” and the “inevitability of the long-standing confrontation with the US imperialists accompanied by the danger of a nuclear war,” the state-run KCNA news agency said.

KCNA called the successful test a “striking demonstration of great military muscle,” while Kim said it was a “miraculous” and “priceless” victory by the Korean people.

The US state department later announced sanctions on entities and people in Russia and North Korea, with the targeted persons and organisations accused of “transferring sensitive items to North Korea’s missile program”.

“These measures are part of our ongoing efforts to impede the DPRK’s ability to advance its missile program and they highlight the negative role Russia plays on the world stage as a proliferator to programs of concern,” the department said, using the initials for the country’s official name the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

South Korea’s outgoing president, Moon Jae-in, who has made engaging with North Korea a major goal of his administration, said the launch posed a serious threat to the Korean peninsula, the region and the international community and was a “clear violation” of UN security council resolutions.

Kishida described the launch as “outrageous”, while Japanese defence minister Makoto Oniki said: “At a time when the world is dealing with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, North Korea is pressing ahead with launches that unilaterally aggravate provocations against the international community, which is absolutely unforgivable.”

The US the UK, France, Ireland, Albania and Norway asked the UN security council to hold a public meeting on Friday to discuss the launch and UN secretary-general António Guterres urged Pyongyang “to desist from taking any further counter-productive actions”.

Analysts say the unprecedented frequency of missile tests this year is a clear signal that Kim is determined to cement North Korea’s status as a nuclear power, enabling him to approach any future nuclear talks with the US from a position of strength.

“Despite economic challenges and technical setbacks, the Kim regime is determined to advance its missile capabilities,” said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University in Seoul. “It would be a mistake for international policymakers to think the North Korean missile threat can be put on the back burner while the world deals with the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”

 

[ctg]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1507246865536151555

 

[J0h1F]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1507246865536151555

Kokonainen:

 

[ctg]

North Korea faked a "successful" launch of its most powerful long-range missile to shore up domestic support for Kim Jong Un's regime after the real test ended in failure, analysts say.

State media trumpeted the "miraculous" launch of what it claimed was a new Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile on March 24, publishing dramatic photos and videos of leader Kim personally overseeing the test.

But analysts identified discrepancies in Pyongyang's account, and South Korean and US intelligence agencies have concluded that North Korea actually fired a Hwasong-15 -- a less-advanced ICBM which it had already tested in 2017.

Why would North Korea do this? Analysts say it urgently needed a domestic propaganda victory ahead of a key anniversary, after the real launch of the Hwasong-17 a week before ended in failure with the missile exploding above the capital Pyongyang.

"North Korea wanted to shore up citizens' loyalty ahead of the Day of the Sun by branding Kim Jong Un a capable leader of a military powerhouse," analyst Yang Moo-jin told AFP, referring to the birth anniversary of founding leader Kim Il Sung on April 15.

But "the March 16 launch failed spectacularly and -- worse -- it happened in Pyongyang so people got to witness the dramatic failure. Kim probably thought he needed something very strong to make up for it, and that's probably why he lied," Yang added.

Whether it was a Hwasong-15 or a Hwasong-17, the March 24 launch showed significant progress from North Korea's last ICBM launch, said Kim Dong-yup, of the University of North Korean Studies.

"It's definitely a different upgraded version," he said, adding that Kim was seeking a larger arsenal of missiles more for "domestic reasons" than as a bargaining chip with the US.

Why did North Korea fake a 'monster missile' test?

Seoul (AFP) March 30, 2022 - North Korea faked a successful launch of its most powerful long-range missile to shore up domestic support for Kim Jong Un's regime after the real test ended in failure, analysts say.

www.spacewar.com

 

[ctg]

Two South Korean air force planes collided in mid-air Friday, killing four pilots, Seoul's military said.
The KT-1 trainer jets crashed near the city of Sacheon, about 300 kilometres south of the capital Seoul, according to military authorities.
"Two KT-1 trainer jets at the Sacheon Air Base collided in mid-air while training and crashed," the defence ministry said in a statement.
Four pilots were killed in the accident, it added.
The air force will "check the exact situation of damage and investigate the cause of the accident", the statement said.
More than 30 firefighters and emergency responders were dispatched to the crash site, the Yonhap news agency reported.
The crash is one of several incidents involving South Korean air force jets this year.
In January, a pilot was killed in an F-5 fighter jet crash.
That accident took place shortly after the country grounded its entire fleet of advanced F-35 fighter jets following a major systems malfunction on one plane that forced a dramatic emergency landing.
The Korean peninsula remains in a technical state of war, as the armistice that ended the conflict in 1953 has yet to be replaced with a peace treaty.

Four dead in South Korea air force jet crash: military

METATEXT

www.spacewar.com

 

[ctg]

South Korea successfully tested its first home-produced solid fuel rocket Wednesday, the country's military said, in a boost to its space-based defense capabilities just days after North Korea test-launched an intercontinental ballistic missile.

The South Korean rocket was fired from a site in Taean, about 93 miles southwest of Seoul, the defense ministry said in a statement. Accompanying photos showed it launching a test payload into space.

In the future, the rocket will be used to place a small satellite into low Earth orbit for surveillance operations, the ministry said.

The successful launch of the test vehicle marked an "important milestone" in strengthening South Korea's space-based surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, the ministry added.

South Korea has no military satellites of its own in orbit and relies on satellite images provided by the United States.

Seoul had been prohibited from developing solid fuel under a 1979 agreement with the United States that limited South Korean missile and rocket activities over concerns of an arms race in the region.

In 2020, the countries agreed to new guidelines that allowed South Korea to use solid fuels for space launch vehicles. Last May, U.S. officials agreed to lift all remaining restrictions on missile development.

Wednesday's rocket launch comes "at a very critical time in which North Korea recently ended its moratorium and launched an ICBM," the defense ministry said.

Last week, North Korea fired its first ICBM since 2017, sending it into the sea less than 100 miles from the coast of Japan.

Pyongyang claimed that the missile was its new Hwasong-17, which analysts believe may be capable of carrying multiple nuclear warheads, but South Korean defense officials said that North Korea actually launched the older Hwasong-15.

While North Korea has stayed in the spotlight with a flurry of weapons tests since the beginning of the year, South Korea has shown off military hardware of its own over recent months, including a submarine-launched ballistic missile and a supersonic cruise missile.

South Korea's military responded to North Korea's ICBM launch last week with a live-fire drill of missiles from the ground, sea and air in a demonstration of what it called its "ability and willingness to respond immediately."

Solid-fuel rockets are less expensive to develop and manufacture than liquid-propellant rockets and can be launched more quickly, the defense ministry said Wednesday.

"Space is a key domain that has a significant impact on national security, and we will expand space defense capabilities, including solid-fuel space launch vehicles, at an early date," it noted.

South Korea tests first solid-fuel rocket in wake of North Korea ICBM launch

Seoul, South Korea (UPI) Mar 31, 2022 - South Korea successfully tested its first home-produced solid fuel rocket Wednesday, the country's military said, in a boost to its space-based defense capabilities just days after North Korea test-

www.spacedaily.com

 

[ctg]

Jos pullukka kuolee syystä taikka toisesta, sisko ajaa PKn sotaan samanlailla kuin putleri

During a visit to the country’s strategic missile command on Friday, South Korean defence minister Suh Wook said that his country had the ability and readiness to launch precision strikes on North Korea if it detects the North intends to fire missiles against its neighbour. Seoul has long maintained such a preemptive military strategy to cope with North Korea’s growing missile and nuclear threats, but it was still highly unusual for a senior Seoul official under the Moon administration to publicly discuss such a possibility.

On Sunday, Kim Yo-jong issued blistering rhetoric at Suh and threats toward Seoul.

“The senseless and scum-like guy dare mention a preemptive strike at a nuclear weapons state,” Kim Yo-jong said in a statement carried by state media. “South Korea may face a serious threat owing to the reckless remarks made by its defense minister.”

“South Korea should discipline itself if it wants to stave off disaster,” she added.

Kim Yo-jong, a senior official in the North’s ruling Workers’ party, is in charge of relations with Seoul and Washington. South Korea’s spy service says she is the North’s No. 2 official behind her brother.

Pak Jong Chon, a secretary in the Workers’ party’s central committee, separately warned that “any slight misjudgment and ill statement rattling the other party under the present situation” may trigger “a dangerous conflict and a full-blown war”.

‘Scum-like guy’: North Korean leader’s sister attacks South Korea defence minister

Kim Jong-un’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, issues blistering attack on Seoul and ‘reckless remarks’ by Suh Wook

www.theguardian.com

 

[Mazikaze]

Jos pullukka kuolee syystä taikka toisesta, sisko ajaa PKn sotaan samanlailla kuin putleri

‘Scum-like guy’: North Korean leader’s sister attacks South Korea defence minister

Kim Jong-un’s sister, Kim Yo-jong, issues blistering attack on Seoul and ‘reckless remarks’ by Suh Wook

www.theguardian.com

Pohjois-Korealta vaan puuttuu paperilla heikompi naapuri, jota lähteä kovistelemaan...

 

[arix]

Pohjois-Korealta vaan puuttuu paperilla heikompi naapuri, jota lähteä kovistelemaan...

Äläs nyt, Venäjä...

 

[ctg]

The influential sister of North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, has said the country’s nuclear forces would “annihilate” the South Korean military if it launched a pre-emptive strike against the regime.

Kim Yo-jong, who holds several senior positions in the government and ruling party, said the North had no intention of starting a second Korean war, but would respond if provoked and leave the South’s military in a state of “total destruction and ruin”.

Her comments after South Korea’s defence minister, Suh Wook, publicly discussed Seoul’s ability to “accurately and quickly hit any target in North Korea” with a range of weapons, as international unease grows over the North’s recent resumption of long-range missile tests. In another statement directed toward Suh on Sunday, she called him a “scum-like guy”.

North Korea would ‘annihilate’ South if provoked, warns Kim Jong-un’s sister

Warning points to a rise in tensions on the peninsula after the North conducted its first intercontinental ballistic missile test in five years

www.theguardian.com

 

[Olympiakasarmi]

Unelma-avioliitto, pullukan sisko ja Putin.

 

[tankki-tapsa]

Tulikin mieleeni että mitähän kimin a-pommeille kuuluu? Onko niitä jo monta ja kukkuvatko ne varmasti? Tästä taas tuli mieleen että putlerille olisi pelin paikka vaihtaa muutama toimiva ohjuksiin sopiva a-pommi sopivaan määrään P-Korealaista "vapaaehtoista". Kyllä ne nyt varmaan ainakin syyrialaisia ja muita älläähejä kovempia sotilaita olisivat, ja joku 100 000 olisi varmaan heti ylimääräisenä tapettavaksi, ehkä useampikin.

 

[ctg]

LIG Nex1 announced on April 4th that it was selected as a preferred bidder by the DAPA (Defense Acquisition Program Administration) for the system development of the lightweight (LW) torpedo-2 (Blue Shark), which will be placed on surface ships to improve the capability of neutralizing and destroying enemy submarines. A series of negotiations will lead to the estimated 150 billion KRW (~$123 million) of the contract by 2029.

The lightweight torpedo-2 will reportedly be capable of quickly responding to enemies’ improving decoys and promptly striking a target from a farther distance with precision. The performance improvement adjusting to the local underwater environment and precision strike capability is expected to enable more efficient naval operations, enhancing the survivability of the ROK Navy’s ships.

The system development project includes several other SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises). Local reports speculate that the phase of mass production would be able to contribute to strengthening the competitiveness of the Korean defense technology, due to the underwater weapon-related synergetic effects.

S.Korea selects LIG Nex1 to improve Blue Shark Torpedo - Naval News

South Korea's LIG Nex1 has been selected to develop an improved variant of the Blue Shark lightweight anti-submarine torpedo

www.navalnews.com

 

[Olympiakasarmi]

Tulikin mieleeni että mitähän kimin a-pommeille kuuluu? Onko niitä jo monta ja kukkuvatko ne varmasti? Tästä taas tuli mieleen että putlerille olisi pelin paikka vaihtaa muutama toimiva ohjuksiin sopiva a-pommi sopivaan määrään P-Korealaista "vapaaehtoista". Kyllä ne nyt varmaan ainakin syyrialaisia ja muita älläähejä kovempia sotilaita olisivat, ja joku 100 000 olisi varmaan heti ylimääräisenä tapettavaksi, ehkä useampikin.

Pommeja on arviolta 40 kappaletta. Eri asia on kuinka moni onnistutaan laukaisemaan kohteisiinsa.

 

[Teräsmies]

Tulikin mieleeni että mitähän kimin a-pommeille kuuluu? Onko niitä jo monta ja kukkuvatko ne varmasti? Tästä taas tuli mieleen että putlerille olisi pelin paikka vaihtaa muutama toimiva ohjuksiin sopiva a-pommi sopivaan määrään P-Korealaista "vapaaehtoista". Kyllä ne nyt varmaan ainakin syyrialaisia ja muita älläähejä kovempia sotilaita olisivat, ja joku 100 000 olisi varmaan heti ylimääräisenä tapettavaksi, ehkä useampikin.

Pohjois-Korealla on ollut jo pidemmän aikaa ohjuksiin sopiva atomipommi ja tätä nykyä myös 200-300 kilotonnin vetypommi. Tuon takia ovat siirtyneet taktisten ydinaseiden kehitykseen (risteilyohjuksien testit liittyvät tuohon), mikäli satelliittien kuvat P-Korean ydintestialueelta pitävät paikkansa, niin uusien taktisien ydinaseiden testit alkavat kohta puoleen.

 

[ctg]

North Korea could be planning its first nuclear weapon test in nearly five years, according to a senior US official who urged the regime to step back from further provocations following its recent long-range missile test.

Sung Kim, the special representative for North Korea policy at the US state department, said Washington believes Pyongyang could demonstrate its growing nuclear weapons capacity on 15 April, an annual holiday held to celebrate the 110th anniversary of the birth of the country’s founder, Kim Il-sung.

North Korea could hold nuclear test next week, US envoy warns

US says Pyongyang may escalate recent provocations with a weapons test on 110th anniversary of founder Kim Il-sung’s birth

www.theguardian.com