Free Republic

North Korea's recent test of its super-large multiple rocket launcher has not only proved the weapon system's improved "volley-firing" capabilities but also showed that North Korea's weapons development programs have proceeded steadily for the past two years, experts said Monday. On Nov. 28, North Korea conducted the test-firing of the super-large multiple launch rocket system for the fourth time this year following Aug. 24, Sept. 10 and Oct. 31 launches. All four tests involved two rockets fired from the weapon system, with the North succeeding to narrow down the firing interval from 17 minutes on Aug. 24 and 3 minutes...

“North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in April said he would give the U.S. until the end of the year to become more flexible on nuclear talks. Since then, he's launched 12 missiles to back up that warning, including a launch on Thursday. So far, though, there is no evidence the U.S. is changing its stance, meaning the situation could soon get much more volatile, as VOA’s Bill Gallo reports from Seoul”...(sound file at link)

By Yi Whan-woo, Kim Yoo-chul As nuclear negotiations between North Korea and the United States remain in a stalemate after no "substantial outcome" from their recent encounter in Sweden, the lack of visible progress in the denuclearization dialogue is raising concerns that the North is "buying time" for its military and nuclear advancement. During an Asan Institute for Policy Studies security forum held in Seoul, Tuesday, Bruce Bennett, a senior defense analyst at the Washington-based RAND Corporation, claimed that despite North Korean leader Kim Jong-un's promise to end his nuclear program, Pyongyang has not taken any meaningful measures toward this....

CONCLUSION: "Based on North Korea’s experience developing the KN-02 missile, which underwent at least 20 flight tests, it seems likely that each new missile system currently being developed will require a similar number of test launches. However, one cannot dismiss the possibility that leaders in Pyongyang are already satisfied with the test results achieved to date, as it is highly probable that the current KN-23, -24, and -25 missiles are more accurate that their Scud-based counterparts. In this case, the last remaining hurdle would be missile reliability and the proven knowledge that they perform as designed under a variety of...

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says Japan firmly protests North Korea's ballistic missile launches. Abe told reporters on Wednesday morning that North Korea had fired two ballistic missiles earlier in the day. He said Japan firmly protests and condemns the launches, which violate UN Security Council resolutions. Abe said the government will work with the United States and the international community under heightened security to ensure the safety of the Japanese people. After Abe spoke to reporters, the government convened a meeting of the National Security Council, attended by Abe, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, and Defense Minister Taro Kono. They are...

SEOUL, South Korea North Korea fired projectiles (Update: Apparently SLBM launch out of Wonsan) toward its eastern sea (Sea of Japan Wednesday) , South Korea's military and Japan's government said, in an apparent display of its expanding military capabilities ahead of planned nuclear negotiations with the United States this weekend. .... excerpt

WASHINGTON: Ousted National Security Advisor John Bolton said Kim Jong Un “will never give up” nuclear weapons voluntarily — an implicit warning to his former boss. Bolton was restating a consensus view of the Intelligence Community, one that runs counter to President Trump’s faith that the North Korean dynast can be wheedled and cajoled. Speaking at the Center for Strategic and International Studies today, Bolton attracted a forest of TV cameras hoping for some fireworks. They probably thought they were getting something hot when Bolton made his comment about North Korea but, as Breaking D readers know, the Intelligence Community’s...

US researchers say satellite images suggest North Korea may be preparing to deploy a ballistic missile-capable submarine. Researchers at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies and satellite operator Planet Labs have told NHK that they have analyzed images of a shipyard in the eastern port city of Sinpo. On September 3 at least 13 pillar-like objects could be seen along a quay, with some vehicles moving around. Images taken on September 12 show the construction of a large structure straddling the quay and the water. The most recent images from Thursday, show the structure covering almost the entire quay. The...

New photos taken of a North Korean shipyard suggest the country could be building a submarine that could potentially be capable of launching a nuclear missile, a report early Tuesday said. The photos show vessels and cranes that could be used to haul a missile out to sea for launch, according to experts at a Washington-based think tank, NBC News reported. The satellite photos seem to confirm North Korean state media reports from July about a newly built submarine. “There is no conclusive evidence at the moment that this is a near-term certainty,” an expert said of a possible missile test. Once a...

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Friday the United States has a really good relationship with North Korea and that the country's leader, Kim Jong-un, has been "pretty straight" with him. "Kim Jong-un has been ... pretty straight with me," Trump told reporters at the White House after North Korea fired what appeared to be two short-range ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast, according to the South Korean military. (Reuters) Earlier North Korea fired two suspected short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast Saturday in the seventh weapons launch in a month, South Korea's military said, a...

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said this week's missile launches were an "adequate warning" against the joint military exercise between South Korea and the United States that kicked off earlier this week, state media reported Wednesday. On Tuesday, North Korea fired two projectiles believed to be short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea, the fourth such launch in less than two weeks. They flew about 450 kilometers across the northern part of the Korean Peninsula, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). "Two tactical guided missiles launched at the operational airfield in the western area of the country flew...

NSC expresses grave concern over North Korea test By Jung Da-min North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) into the East Sea, Wednesday morning, the latest in a series of missile tests off its eastern coastal area since May. These latest launches came six days after a similar test of two missiles last week. Hours after the missile tests, Cheong Wa Dae convened an emergency National Security Council (NSC), presided over by National Security Adviser Chung Eui-yong. "We expressed grave concerns over the firing of the missiles, which could have a negative impact on peace-building efforts," the presidential office...

A former U.S. Marine accused of breaking into North Korea's embassy in Madrid and assaulting diplomatic personnel was freed on $1.3 million bond in Los Angeles on Tuesday. As a condition of his release, Christopher Ahn must confine himself to his home in the Los Angeles suburb of Chino Hills ahead of his possible extradition to Spain and must wear an ankle monitor. “I spent a lot of time reading about you and I’m confident you’re going to do the right thing,” U.S. Magistrate Judge Jean Rosenbluth told Ahn, who had several family members in attendance at the hearing.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has called for a "full combat posture" as state media yesterday released photos showing missiles being fired during a long-range strike drill conducted by Pyongyang. The photos came a day after it tested two short-range missiles. Analysts said the regime may have developed a new missile that is easier to hide, harder to strike down and capable of hitting all of South Korea.

North Korea has test-fired at least one unidentified projectile from a missile base just five days after its first rocket and missile launch since 2017. The projectile was launched from a medium-range ballistic missile base as South Korean, American and Japanese officials meet in Seoul to discuss North Korea amid fears that tensions could escalate again. South Korea's military said the projectile was fired from Sino-ri in an eastwards direction at 4.30pm local time on Thursday.

Original in Japanese: 北朝鮮の飛翔体、弾道ミサイルか　国連制裁違反の可能性 ("North Korean Launch, Could Possibly Be Ballistic Missile, and Possible UN Violation") Two paragraph synopsis from the original Japanese--my translation (breaking): "Kim Jong Un personally oversaw the launch of projectiles yesterday from the east coast of North Korea into the Sea of Japan. Now based on photo analysis of the launch from images provided by official North Korean news sources, South Korean military specialists have analyzed the vehicle, and a viewpoint is emerging the launch yesterday was, in fact, likely a violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions against North Korea launching such ballistic missiles." "...

Basically leading with short dispatches saying the North Koreans did this at around 0906 am local Saturday (8:06 pm eastern USA) in Korea/Japan, about 90 minutes ago, into the Sea of Japan, traveling 70 to 200 kilometers from a launch site near Wonsan on DPRK east coast. (Report in Japanese—because fast breaking) Conservative Sankei Shimbun news, Tokyo

Weeks after the collapse of the summit between Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump in Hanoi, Vietnam, the North Korean leader finally broke his silence. In a speech heavily focused on foreign affairs delivered to the Supreme People’s Assembly – North Korea’s pro forma parliament – Kim made clear his position. He said that a third summit with Trump wasn’t off the table just yet, but getting there would require evidence that the U.S. position on sanctions relief more seriously. To this end, Kim also echoed a message he had originally delivered during his New Year’s Day address: that...

North Korea is possibly building a new submarine that can fire ballistic missiles, according to South Korean and U.S. defense officials, Friday. This could be a serious security threat to the United States as the submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) may reach as far as the U.S. mainland. "[SLBM technology] changes the defense equation in terms of where the origin could be," U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Policy John Rood said Wednesday (local time) in a Senate hearing. The SLBMs are considered more threatening weapons than intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM), as they are harder to detect and increase the regime's strike...

(Kim Jong-Un's Assassinated Half-Brother) The morning of 13 February 2017 was like any other at Kuala Lumpur’s hectic international airport terminal so it would have been easy to miss a lone North Korean man, clad in a blue polo shirt and jeans, heading to check into his flight to Macau. As he ambled past a column, a backpack slung over one shoulder, a woman approached him and wiped an oily substance on his face before disappearing, her unusual actions caught on CCTV. Moments later, another woman came from behind and covered his eyes with her hands. She then slid...