Deadly spiral towards war begins: South Korea unveils ballastic missile it says can hit anywhere in North Korea

 

February 14, 2013 – SOUTH KOREA – South Korea unveiled a cruise missile on Thursday that it said can hit the office of North Korea’s leaders, trying to address concerns that it is technologically behind its unpredictable rival which this week conducted its third nuclear test. South Korean officials declined to say the exact range of the missile but said it could hit targets anywhere in North Korea. The Defense Ministry released video footage of the missiles being launched from destroyers and submarines striking mock targets. The weapon was previewed in April last year and officials said deployment was now complete. “The cruise missile being unveiled today is a precision-guided weapon that can identify and strike the window of the office of North Korea’s leadership” ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok told reporters. North Korea has forged ahead with long-range missile development, successfully launching a rocket in December that put a satellite into orbit. The North’s ultimate aim, Washington believes, is to design an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead that could hit the United States. North Korea, which accuses the United States and its “puppet,” South Korea, of war-mongering on an almost daily basis, is likely to respond angrily to South Korea flexing its muscles. North Korea, technically still at war with the South after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, carried out its third nuclear test on Tuesday, drawing condemnation from around the world including its only major ally China. The test and the threat of more unspecified actions from Pyongyang have raised tensions on the Korean peninsula as the South prepares to inaugurate a new president on February 25. “The situation prevailing on the Korean peninsula at present is so serious that even a slight accidental case may lead to an all-out war which can disturb the whole region,” North Korea’s official KCNA news agency said. –Reuters

NK test sets off arms race on Korean peninsula: South Korea said it would accelerate the development of longer-range ballistic missiles that could cover the whole of North Korea in response to a third nuclear test by Pyongyang. “We will speed up the development of ballistic missiles with a range of 800 kilometers (500 miles),” Defence Ministry spokesman Kim Min-Seok told reporters. In October last year, South Korea reached a deal with the United States to almost triple the range of its missile systems – with Seoul arguing it needed an upgrade to counter the North’s missile and nuclear programs. The United States has 28,500 troops in South Korea and guarantees a nuclear “umbrella” in case of any atomic attack. In return, Seoul accepts limits on its missile capabilities. Prior to the October agreement, the South was restricted to missiles with a range of 300 kilometers. The extension will not only bring the whole of North Korea within reach of Seoul’s rockets, but also parts of China and Japan. Some experts have suggested it would provide the South with a pre-emptive strike facility against the North’s nuclear installations. Kim said the South would also speed up the deployment of a “kill chain”’ system capable of detecting, targeting and destroying North Korean missiles. “The military is closely watching the North in case of further provocative acts,” he said. Following North Korea’s nuclear test yesterday, the head of South Korea’s intelligence agency warned that Pyongyang may well carry out a further test or a ballistic missile launch in the coming days or weeks. North Korea is a “serious threat” to the United States and Washington must be prepared to deal with it, US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta warned after Pyongyang conducted a nuclear test. “We saw what North Korea has done these last few weeks with a missile test and now a nuclear test,” said Leon Panetta, the outgoing defense secretary, at a farewell ceremony. –News

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