Seoul: North Korea fires submarine-launched missile

[webfact]

Seoul: North Korea fires submarine-launched missile

By HYUNG-JIN KIM

 

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A North Korean ballistic missile fired from a submarine Wednesday flew about 500 kilometers (310 miles) in the longest flight by that type of weapon, Seoul officials said, a range that can place much of South Korea within its striking distance.

 

Seoul officials condemned the launch as an "armed protest" against the start of annual South Korean-U.S. military drills that North Korean calls an invasion rehearsal. The launch was also the latest in a series of missile, rocket and other weapon tests by North Korea, which is openly pushing to acquire a reliable weapon capable striking targets as far away as the continental U.S.

 

The missile fired from a submarine off the eastern North Korean coastal town of Sinpo landed in waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan, according to a statement from South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff. The U.S. Strategic Command said it tracked the North Korean submarine launch of the presumed KN-11 missile into the Sea of Japan.

 

The 500-kilometer distance is longer than ones recorded by other submarine-launched missiles launched by North Korea, and puts most of South Korea within its range if it is fired near the border, although North Korea already has a variety of land-based missiles that can strike South Korea and Japan.

 

North Korea fired two missiles from submarines earlier this year but South Korean defense officials believe they exploded in midair after flying fewer than 30 kilometers (18 miles).

 

The North's acquiring the ability to launch missiles from submarines would be an alarming development because missiles fired from submerged vessels are harder to detect in advance. The U.S. Strategic Command statement said the North Korean launch did not pose a threat to North America but that the U.S. military "remains vigilant in the face of North Korean provocations."

 

North Korea's missile and nuclear programs are a source of regional security concerns. Outside experts say the North doesn't yet have a reliable long-range nuclear missile capable of reaching the continental U.S., but they acknowledge the North has been making steady progress on its weapons programs and could one day acquire such a weapon.

 

Some civilian experts said they believe the North already has the technology to put warheads on shorter-range missiles that can strike South Korea and Japan.

 

Wednesday's launch comes two days after the U.S. and South Korea began their 12-day Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercises, prompting North Korean threats of retaliation. Before the launch, North Korea warned that the joint military exercises were pushing the Korean Peninsula "to the brink of a war" and asked for an urgent meeting of the U.N. Security Council.

 

The South Korean military statement said it considers the North Korean missile launch a challenge to peace on the Korean Peninsula and noted it violated U.N. Security Council resolutions that ban any ballistic missile activities by North Korea.

 

The launch also comes at a time of intensified animosities between the rival Koreas over the defection of a senior North Korean diplomat in London and a U.S. plan to install a sophisticated missile defense system in South Korea.

 

About 28,500 U.S. troops are based in South Korea to help deter potential aggression from North Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War that ended with an armistice, not a peace treaty. North Korea usually responds to the regular South Korea-U.S. military drills with weapons tests and fiery warlike rhetoric.

 

The American-led U.N. Command in South Korea on Tuesday accused North Korea of planting land mines near a truce village inside the Demilitarized Zone that divides the two Koreas. Much of the border, one of the world's most dangerous flashpoints, is strewn with land mines and laced with barbed wire. South Korean media said no land mines had been planted in the area of the truce village of Panmunjom until North Korea placed an unspecified number there last week.

 

-- © Associated Press 2016-08-24

[ivan96822]

Their leader needs to be assassinated...

[ivan96822]

The people of North Korea live horrible existences there...

[ivan96822]

And yet, they have been brainwashed into thinking their "dear leader" is someone very special...

[saminoz]

Given the US/South Korean military exercises, the US Navy should have a hunter-killer submarine participating.

Easy to send a meaningful message.......

[LawrenceChee]

19 minutes ago, saminoz said:

Given the US/South Korean military exercises, the US Navy should have a hunter-killer submarine participating.

Easy to send a meaningful message.......

 

That would be dumb and release a crazy Rottweiler in the region....please calm down mr USA and stop meddling....we know your arm factories executives need another new year end bonus ...for the sake of world stability ...It would be nicer to just let things calm down and not escalate it further.  No more cowboy shows...we have enough ro deal with started by the crazed mentality to reply every foreign issue with more missiles. 

[phantomfiddler]

Little fat boy needs a good spanking !

[MaxYakov]

"Outside experts say the North doesn't yet have a reliable long-range nuclear missile capable of reaching the continental U.S., but they acknowledge the North has been making steady progress on its weapons programs and could one day acquire such a weapon."

 

So I guess they don't believe their submarines can navigate the Pacific to get within missile-range of the continental US, huh?

 

I would bet these are diesel subs and they either don't have the fuel or wouldn't trust the crew not to defect on a long voyage or they are so irreplaceable that they fear losing one or all of the above.

[JacChang]

Prayut needs to invoke Section 44 on Kim Dong Dong. Imagine those poor fishes and radiation on our SALMON.

[Publicus]

18 hours ago, MaxYakov said:

"Outside experts say the North doesn't yet have a reliable long-range nuclear missile capable of reaching the continental U.S., but they acknowledge the North has been making steady progress on its weapons programs and could one day acquire such a weapon."

 

So I guess they don't believe their submarines can navigate the Pacific to get within missile-range of the continental US, huh?

 

I would bet these are diesel subs and they either don't have the fuel or wouldn't trust the crew not to defect on a long voyage or they are so irreplaceable that they fear losing one or all of the above.

 

Points well taken from a best source, so I'd mention North Korea has one SSN 'boomer" sub. Yep, that's o-n-e. The missile tube is attached to the con ('conning tower' for some readers). I wouldn't want to be there.

 

The satellite image shows the crane at right center loading the tube

that is attached to the con.

 

 

One nuke is of course more than enough, however, the USN anti-submarine warfare (ASW to others) might be on it before the sub enters open waters. (Satellite photos, recon etc)

[hawker9000]

On ‎8‎/‎24‎/‎2016 at 2:49 AM, LawrenceChee said:

 

That would be dumb and release a crazy Rottweiler in the region....please calm down mr USA and stop meddling....we know your arm factories executives need another new year end bonus ...for the sake of world stability ...It would be nicer to just let things calm down and not escalate it further.  No more cowboy shows...we have enough ro deal with started by the crazed mentality to reply every foreign issue with more missiles. 

 

Actually, you're the one with the overactive imagination.  'Just an exercise.  E-x-e-r-c-I-s-e.  (You know, sort of like your regular America-hating lessons in lameness.  Why is it that an actual LAUNCH by N. Korea goes unmentioned by you, but a sub simply participating in an exercise gives you such  epic heartburn?)  And these are already-planned joint exercises!  Get a grip!!  Sending an attack sub to merely participate is hardly a provocation - certainly not compared to this actual LAUNCH by N. Korea - unless you're just grinding your usual dull and worn-out axe...  'Nothing whatsoever to do with "arm factories".   LOL

 

 

[LawrenceChee]

On 26 August 2016 at 3:52 AM, hawker9000 said:

 

Actually, you're the one with the overactive imagination.  'Just an exercise.  E-x-e-r-c-I-s-e.  (You know, sort of like your regular America-hating lessons in lameness.  Why is it that an actual LAUNCH by N. Korea goes unmentioned by you, but a sub simply participating in an exercise gives you such  epic heartburn?)  And these are already-planned joint exercises!  Get a grip!!  Sending an attack sub to merely participate is hardly a provocation - certainly not compared to this actual LAUNCH by N. Korea - unless you're just grinding your usual dull and worn-out axe...  'Nothing whatsoever to do with "arm factories".   LOL

 

 

 

 

He is a classified nuthouse....everyone knows he is nuthouse....he does not have any entertainment like netflix or a vegas casino to keep him occupied. he is a spoiled kid with missiles....yes ...you would be a cuckoo to think he understand the difference between an exercise and a provocation for him to go nuts and press all the buttons.

[ilostmypassword]

2 hours ago, LawrenceChee said:

 

 

He is a classified nuthouse....everyone knows he is nuthouse....he does not have any entertainment like netflix or a vegas casino to keep him occupied. he is a spoiled kid with missiles....yes ...you would be a cuckoo to think he understand the difference between an exercise and a provocation for him to go nuts and press all the buttons.

And the reason this lunatic and previous lunatics rule North Korea is China's economic assistance.  I suppose China calculates that it's worse to have a refugee crisis and ultimately a unified Korea on its border rather than a nuclear armed lunatic.  I think that's a big mistake.  Embargoing North Korea is something China should have done years ago.

[Rancid]

That Dear Leader is nuts is a given. However my limited understanding was that Sth Korea was more threatened by the enormous amount of artillery that can hammer Seoul. Seems that new US missile system they are installing might really be about China rather than Nth Korea.

[ilostmypassword]

5 minutes ago, Rancid said:

That Dear Leader is nuts is a given. However my limited understanding was that Sth Korea was more threatened by the enormous amount of artillery that can hammer Seoul. Seems that new US missile system they are installing might really be about China rather than Nth Korea.

I don't think anti-missile systems are about deflecting huge amounts of incoming  shells.  Anyway, the South Korean armed forces are vastly superior to the North's. I think this is about nuclear missles or shells.

[LawrenceChee]

On 28 August 2016 at 8:21 AM, ilostmypassword said:

And the reason this lunatic and previous lunatics rule North Korea is China's economic assistance.  I suppose China calculates that it's worse to have a refugee crisis and ultimately a unified Korea on its border rather than a nuclear armed lunatic.  I think that's a big mistake.  Embargoing North Korea is something China should have done years ago.

 

Have a look at what is happening to Europe. I suppose if you are the leader of CCP or Russia , you believe this is actually going to help the regional stability or make this region better to have a unified Korea.

 

Has South Korea come out in the open and say openly they are ready to integrate for a entire Korea and have the resources to support that ? Even the South Koreans know this is mission impossible. Japan is ready to assist ? 

 

I can safely say S Korea , Japan and ASEAN in this region know when they look at their coffers , they rather have a lunatic fire some missiles annually than solve this economic and refugees problem.

 

China has 1.3 billion to take care of its own. I can say they are doing their share in world burden of economic care. 

[hawker9000]

21 minutes ago, LawrenceChee said:

 

Have a look at what is happening to Europe. I suppose if you are the leader of CCP or Russia , you believe this is actually going to help the regional stability or make this region better to have a unified Korea.

 

Has South Korea come out in the open and say openly they are ready to integrate for a entire Korea and have the resources to support that ? Even the South Koreans know this is mission impossible. Japan is ready to assist ? 

 

I can safely say S Korea , Japan and ASEAN in this region know when they look at their coffers , they rather have a lunatic fire some missiles annually than solve this economic and refugees problem.

 

China has 1.3 billion to take care of its own. I can say they are doing their share in world burden of economic care. 

 

You need to read more and bloviate less.  He didn't SAY he thought S. Korea was advocating a unified Korea.  What he SAID was (if you bothered to read rather than just spew)  that he thought it a possible calculation by the CHINESE! 

 

I don't know about the Chinese seriously anticipating a unified Korea (though it surely wouldn't be their first choice), but I definitely DO believe they are apprehensive about a possible refugee flood subsequent to a N. Korean collapse.  I also think they're not all that keen about N. Korea's nuclear saber-rattling driving other countries in the region (e.g., Japan & S. Korea) toward nuke programs of their own, or the re-militarization of Japan.

[ilostmypassword]

On 8/28/2016 at 6:15 AM, LawrenceChee said:

 

 

He is a classified nuthouse....everyone knows he is nuthouse....he does not have any entertainment like netflix or a vegas casino to keep him occupied. he is a spoiled kid with missiles....yes ...you would be a cuckoo to think he understand the difference between an exercise and a provocation for him to go nuts and press all the buttons.

West Germany managed to merge with East Germany.  Given that Japan, China, and South Korea all have strong economies and a combined population that outnumbers North Korea by something on the order of 50 to 1, it could be managed.

[thaihome]

3 hours ago, LawrenceChee said:

...

Has S Korea  come out in the open and say openly they are ready to integrate for a entire Korea and have the resources to support that ? Even the South Koreans know this is mission impossible. Japan is ready to assist ? 

 

I can safely say S Korea , Japan and ASEAN in this region know when they look at their coffers , they rather have a lunatic fire some missiles annually than solve this economic and refugees problem.

 

... 

 

South Korea has  a government ministry devoted to unification,  so yes, I believe South Korea has openly said they are ready to integrate the Korean peninsula. 

http://eng.unikorea.go.kr/content.do?cmsid=1786

 

North Korea would not exist for long without China support. Your continued denial of this is disingenuous. 

 

TH 

[LawrenceChee]

No one is denying that China has been supporting N Korea and keeping the peninsula in relative peace. 

 

reading the link...in Asian minds it's no wonder why it has not happened...these are ideals written probably by the west...nothing in the plan about the $$, healthcare, housing, jobs, economy etc....all these are the practical things and in the east we like practical governments not fairy tales of democracy and voting...ask the middle east in Iraq how did that went ?

 

 

[LawrenceChee]

9 hours ago, ilostmypassword said:

West Germany managed to merge with East Germany.  Given that Japan, China, and South Korea all have strong economies and a combined population that outnumbers North Korea by something on the order of 50 to 1, it could be managed.

 

Have a look at Myanmar and Thailand and Philippines ...that's just talk of merging less than one million on each of the undefined group and it has no traction and nothing has happened in the last 50 years....

 

It could be managed equals to ..... ? The North Korean refugees wont integrate into China or Japan. Japan has the least immigration % in the world. 

[ilostmypassword]

21 minutes ago, LawrenceChee said:

No one is denying that China has been supporting N Korea and keeping the peninsula in relative peace. 

 

reading the link...in Asian minds it's no wonder why it has not happened...these are ideals written probably by the west...nothing in the plan about the $$, healthcare, housing, jobs, economy etc....all these are the practical things and in the east we like practical governments not fairy tales of democracy and voting...ask the middle east in Iraq how did that went ?

 

 

And if they do actually launch nuclear missiles?  Loons like this could have been put a stop to.

[ilostmypassword]

3 minutes ago, LawrenceChee said:

 

Have a look at Myanmar and Thailand and Philippines ...that's just talk of merging less than one million on each of the undefined group and it has no traction and nothing has happened in the last 50 years....

 

It could be managed equals to ..... ? The North Korean refugees wont integrate into China or Japan. Japan has the least immigration % in the world. 

I think with some financial assistance, South Korea could manage to integrate the North Korean quite successfully. And reunite the country. I do suspect that China wouldn't be so happy to find a relatively free and dynamic economy right on its border.

[MaxYakov]

On 8/25/2016 at 0:53 PM, Publicus said:

 

Points well taken from a best source, so I'd mention North Korea has one SSN 'boomer" sub. Yep, that's o-n-e. The missile tube is attached to the con ('conning tower' for some readers). I wouldn't want to be there.

 

The satellite image shows the crane at right center loading the tube

that is attached to the con.

 

 

One nuke is of course more than enough, however, the USN anti-submarine warfare (ASW to others) might be on it before the sub enters open waters. (Satellite photos, recon etc)

 

I do have some experience in the "Boomer" business having been a crew member for seven patrols aboard Polaris FBMs. I personally, find it unbelievable that North Korea could support anything even remotely approaching the, now, obsolete and scrapped Polaris FBM technology. The Trident FBMs are a complete generation or two beyond Polaris and I hope they never have to launch - it would be truly apocalyptic.

 

I don't believe the Dwarf Dictator nor most people have a clue about the Armageddon-level of destructiveness of the Trident submarine fleet and the Nuclear Trident in general.

 

Pray they never launch. If they do, there primary mission has failed miserably.

Edited August 29, 2016 by MaxYakov

[LawrenceChee]

If you can identify the brash behaviour of a bully in the schoolyard...yo would know it's all bluster and they have no nuclear abilities....but then the USA suffers from feelings of paranoia most of the time...trust me if they had one, China would have killed him right away.

 

Financial assistance ? Have a look at Germany's budget for their refugees and see if S Korea has the means...the short answer. NO. If you are talking about the world community...USA is broke from their syrian inclusions and it's not ending yet for them in the middle east

 

Germany and Europe is broke from the refugee situation and Brexit is more important for them than NKorea...ASEAN and the neighbours forget it....China has its own problems....

 

so again...it's fine for the moment for the region for the idiot to keep doing his annual show and tell...just pray that the USA does not get involved as it normally means tragedy for those involved....they have a zero record of long term planning for their campaigns since the 2000s...all have been humanitarian disasters.

[Publicus]

Each year during the annual US-ROK Joint Military Command exercises (land, air, sea) the Kim in charge in Pyongyang goes bonkers, hence this sub ballistic missile firing and at this time. It's been going on for decades and now there are nukes in the equation.

 

Xi Jinping has visited Seoul but Xi has not visited Pyongyang. Pres. Park of ROK has visited Beijing but Kim Jong Fat has not visited Beijing. What is happening is that CCP in Beijing props up the Kims in Pyongyang while the Kims play Xi and the CCP like a fiddle. CCP continues to ship the vital supplies N Korea needs while Pyongyang ships to Beijing an autographed photo of Kim Jong Un. It is reality that Kim could use a nuke against a Chinese city as well as any city in S Korea or Japan so Xi is up the creek on this score too. Kim has Xi in a box, worse than his old man -- the now deceased Kim -- had Hu Jintao before Xi backed into a corner.

 

S Korea does not want unification of the two Koreas. Not any more. There are indeed two Koreas, i.e., one thrives in the 21st century while the other rots in the tomb of the Stalinist past. S Korea did ongoing profuse studies of the unification of Germany and saw how expensive that has been. And the West Germans were flat out far advanced of the North Koreans socially, culturally, politically, and in their cognition of the modern world and its pace. The sacrifice in S Korea would be too great, too costly, and it would be a ball and chain to S Korea's continued advancement. Each time since 1985 when I've asked a South Korean about unification, they say in ten more years. They say it each and every ten years. Guaranteed there's another ten years coming up in the present statements too.

 

The status quo is indeed preferred by all parties involved throughout the immediate region, starting with the long deceased six-party talks -- its participants having been N Korea, S Korea, Japan, China, Russia USA. Too much upset for everyone, which is why Xi has to turn his face the other way. Xi was welcomed in Seoul but that's as close to Pyongyang as he's got since becoming the great restorer of China's glory dayze.

 

Seoul meanwhile succeeded in its intensive campaign to get President Obama to sign off in July for the Thaad anti-missile system. Thaad is insurance to Seoul against N Korea missiles and also to check the CCP Chinese overbearing arrogance toward the Little Dragon on the peninsula that remains conveniently divided. Japan has the Thaad system and, given Japan and S Korea are US mutual defense treaty allies, Seoul finally got its biggest defense wish.

 

Because the Thaad radars can penetrate CCP China even more precisely from S Korea than they already do from Japan (and Guam), Xi is getting heat on all of this too from his many critics in CCP. Thaad in Seoul detects missiles in the region quicker than does the system in Alaska, and Thaad takes out missiles on the way up or on the way down -- either way. Thaad in S Korea is a tectonic shift in the land based nuclear strategic advantage to the United States vis-a-vis CCP China. Kim meanwhile keeps playing that fiddle.

Edited August 30, 2016 by Publicus
Typo and revise

[ilostmypassword]

[8 p8
.l.8i,.ik,kklk.8.K?i+-
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?" userid="160540] If you can identify the brash l8k 7l
9p.? a bully in the schoolyard...yo would know it's al9l bluster and they have no nuclear abilities....but then the USA suffers from feelings of paranoia most of the time...trust me if they had one, China would have killed him right away.

 

Financial assistance ? Have a look at Germany's budget for their refugees and see if S Korea has the means...the short answer. NO. If you are talking about the world community...USA is broke from their syrian inclusions and it's not ending yet for them in the middle east

 

Germany and Europe is broke from the refugee situation and Brexit is more important for them than NKorea...ASEAN and the neighbours forget it....China has its own problems....

 

so again...it's fine for the moment for the region for the idiot to keep doing his annual show and tell...just pray that the USA does not get involved as it normally means tragedy for those involved....they have a zero record of long term planning for their campaigns since the 2000s...all have been humanitarian disasters.