Thursday, May 28, 2015

Major construction at NKorea rocket site, US institute says

My Way News - Major construction at NKorea rocket site, US institute says
WASHINGTON (AP) — Satellite imagery shows significant new construction at North Korea's main rocket launch site in a sign of leader Kim Jong Un's determination to pursue a space program despite international censure, a U.S. research institute said Thursday.
North Korea is barred under U.N. Security Council resolutions from launching rockets as that technology can also be used to launch ballistic missiles.
Kim, however, declared this month that its space program "can never be abandoned."
North Korea has been upgrading the Sohae launch site on its west coast since mid-2013 after it blasted its first rocket into space in December 2012.
It says the space program is peaceful.
...Satellite imagery analyst Tim Brown writes that the expansion of the launch tower suggests the North wants to field a larger space launch vehicle, which may also contribute to its development of long-range ballistic missiles.
Concern is rising over North Korea's weapons development.
The North recently claimed it tested a new type of missile from a submarine and reiterated that it had built a nuclear warhead small enough to be mounted on a long-range missile.
Outside analysts are skeptical about both claims, but they believe the North has built a small but growing nuclear bomb arsenal and advanced its missile program since international nuclear disarmament talks stalled in early 2009....

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