N. Korea fires sixth missile in three days
Source: Agencies |
May 21, 2013, Tuesday
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NORTH Korea fired short-range projectiles into its own eastern waters yesterday for a third straight day, and the country said it was bolstering deterrence against enemy attack.
North Korea regularly conducts short-range missile tests.
Analysts say the recent launches appear to be weapons tests or an attempt to get US and South Korean attention amid tentative signs of diplomacy after soaring tensions that followed UN sanctions aimed at a North Korean nuclear test in February.
The two projectiles fired yesterday had similar trajectories as four previous launches over the past two days, according to officials at South Korea's Defense Ministry and Joint Chiefs of Staff.
South Korean officials were analyzing whether the projectiles were missiles or rockets fired from a large-caliber gun North Korea may be developing.
Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok told reporters earlier yesterday that South Korea is taking seriously whatever weapons North Korea develops because it could attack South Korea. He said artillery guns with a larger caliber will likely have more destructive power.
South Korea urged North Korea to behave responsibly, while the US said threats or provocations would only further deepen North Korea's international isolation.
In Pyongyang, North Korea's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea yesterday called South Korean and US criticism an "intolerable challenge" that is deepening tension.
The committee said it conducted "rocket launching tests" on Saturday and Sunday as part of drills to bolster deterrence against what it calls US and South Korean plots to launch nuclear strikes against North Korea. It didn't comment yesterday's firing.
North Korea has a variety of missiles but Seoul and Washington don't believe the country has mastered the technology needed to make nuclear warheads small and light enough to be placed on a missile capable of reaching the US.
The Korean Peninsula officially remains in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.
North Korea regularly conducts short-range missile tests.
Analysts say the recent launches appear to be weapons tests or an attempt to get US and South Korean attention amid tentative signs of diplomacy after soaring tensions that followed UN sanctions aimed at a North Korean nuclear test in February.
The two projectiles fired yesterday had similar trajectories as four previous launches over the past two days, according to officials at South Korea's Defense Ministry and Joint Chiefs of Staff.
South Korean officials were analyzing whether the projectiles were missiles or rockets fired from a large-caliber gun North Korea may be developing.
Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok told reporters earlier yesterday that South Korea is taking seriously whatever weapons North Korea develops because it could attack South Korea. He said artillery guns with a larger caliber will likely have more destructive power.
South Korea urged North Korea to behave responsibly, while the US said threats or provocations would only further deepen North Korea's international isolation.
In Pyongyang, North Korea's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea yesterday called South Korean and US criticism an "intolerable challenge" that is deepening tension.
The committee said it conducted "rocket launching tests" on Saturday and Sunday as part of drills to bolster deterrence against what it calls US and South Korean plots to launch nuclear strikes against North Korea. It didn't comment yesterday's firing.
North Korea has a variety of missiles but Seoul and Washington don't believe the country has mastered the technology needed to make nuclear warheads small and light enough to be placed on a missile capable of reaching the US.
The Korean Peninsula officially remains in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty.
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