Posted on 12/13/2009 8:39:11 PM PST by ErnstStavroBlofeld
Iran's military has postponed a test firing of a new intermediate-range ballistic missile after a shipment of parts from North Korea was delayed, Japan's Kyodo news service reported Dec. 6. The report quoted a western diplomatic source in South Korea familiar with North Korean issues as saying that Tehran told Pyongyang that it needs electronic components for improving the missile's accuracy that were ordered from North Korea.
The delay in delivering the parts is a source of friction between the two countries, the source said.
According to the report, North Korea has said it shipped the components in 10 containers that were sent to Iran via Unite Arab Emirates in July from an Australian cargo ship. Iran, however, believes the components were not in the containers, according to the source.
A second source in East Asia with knowledge of the content of the cargo said there were no components that could be used for ballistic missiles in any of the containers, noting that only "conventional weapons were found."
The incident has fueled speculation that North Korea is having problems producing missile parts as a result of sanctions imposed after its May 2009 nuclear test.
North Korea has been a major supplier of missiles and components to Iran, which has several systems based on North Korean missiles, including the 620-mile range Nodong.
According to the report, North Korea has developed the new intermediate-range missile based on a Soviet-design submarine-launched ballistic missile, the SSN6. It is known as the BM-25 or Musudan among Western intelligence circles and military experts.
"The shipment of the electronic components was supposed to be part of the new agreement signed in late 2008 between Iran and North Korea for the continued supply of the new missile's technology," the diplomatic source said.
(Excerpt) Read more at geostrategy-direct.com ...
The dog ate your missile guidance system.
Then we ate the dog.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.