North Korea Threatens Military Action on Japan If It Shoots Down Their "Satellite" (ICBM) (Breaking)

Sankei News (quoting North Korean Central News Agency) ^ | 31 March 2009 | Sankei News

[AmericanInTokyo]

As expected (and they do tend to shoot off their mouths a lot with threats and big talk), North Korea delivered "the threat" tonight in an official statement out of their Korean Central News Agency (link to the original Japanese language report). North Korea is threatening Japan with military action if Japan takes down their Taepodong-2 (which they refer to as a "satellite") from the skies this week.

Conservative Japanese daily Sankei (online) reports from Japan (in Japanese) a little while ago:

HERE If above link does not work.

[edpc]

In a perfect world, there would be simultaneous “mishaps” with the missile in flight and the USS Pueblo at dock.

[bert]

To be weak, you first have to be.

There is vacuum on the Potomac. All eyes are directed inward to the establishment of the socialist order.

[SampleMan]

Who doesn’t think that Japan could reduce North Korea’s pathetic military ‘machine’ to wreckage inside of a week?

Japan is very short on offensive capability. They have a very professional and otherwise well equiped military, but what will they hit NK with? They don't have the right weapons mix right now.

[AmericanInTokyo]

They have potential capabilities to do some nasty things without even launching stuff externally toward Japan.

What I am saying is, by all accounts, "the zips are in the wire." ( as in, domestic terrorism, WMD in Tokyo by suicide agents, that kinda thing) there is a significant fifth column operating already in Japan that could be activated. there are many who are life long residents of Japan and yet are loyal to Pyongyang, operating more or less with impunity, although they are watched by the authorities)... DPRK could also launch a barrage of nodongs and scuds across the Sea of Japan toward Japan, of course Pyongyang would like in ashes about 24 hours later.

[Le Chien Rouge]

The North Koreans are the victims!!

According to acedamia America,if Japan would only share and “spread their wealth” around Asia, an utopia paradise could be created, eliminating the need for the threat of violence.

sarc//

[aviator]

This means that the NK planned flight path will go over Japan.

[CtBigPat]

Trash it on the launch pad!

While there at it they should also target the control bunker (kill the rocket scientists) and the viewing stands (commie bigwigs).

[wny]

I still say Japan does nothing.

[DannyTN]

Didn’t the U.S. already say we were going to do nothing.

[Commander X]

North Korea knows that Zero has zero courage.

[Commander X]

North Korea knows that Zero has zero courage.

[Erik Latranyi]

...and so when this thing blows up due to North Korean defects do they blame it on Japan and start a war?

[WellyP]

What direction is the easiest direction to achieve an orbit? Any other direction is a provocation.

[AmericanInTokyo]

One does wonder if MoveOn.org or Code Pink, or any other major antiwar groups are protesting North Korea, have made any statements, sent messages to the DPRK Envoy in New York to back off, etc. I am sure there is the sound of crickets chirping.

[mkjessup]

Japan is very short on offensive capability. They have a very professional and otherwise well equiped military, but what will they hit NK with? They don't have the right weapons mix right now.

I'm sure they could come up with something in a hurry, if need be.

[AmericanInTokyo]

Yes. Their plan is to fly right smack over Japanese territory, over Akita and Iwate Prefectures in Northern Japan, some of it over populated cities. That is where the PAC-3 Patriot missile batteries (among other places) have been set up by the Japanese military over the last 3-4 days. North Korea had the same planned route in 2006 and also in the past they shot a Taepodong-1 right over Japan as well. Their intent is not to orbit a satellite, but to develop an ICBM for long range capability, and then be able to load it with a nuclear weapon, with which they can threaten Hawaii or the US West Coast. This is not for peaceful purposes. Kim Jong il's exact quote (when pushing his national infrastructure to achieve this goal) is: "With THIS, the US bastards will leave us alone."

[AmericanInTokyo]

Yes, Secretary Gates said that we "might" shoot it down if it went near Hawaii.

Essentially he cut loose from the Mutual Defense Pact with Japan, live on TV Sunday, without even realizing it, and said in essence, not only "Japan, you are on your own", but also "Japan, you are responsible, not us, for protecting our 38,000 US troops in Japan on your soil if the North attacks or the missile goes awry". Totally irresponsible. I could see (former UN) Ambassador and all around Good Guy John Bolton popping a corpuscle in his brain over this. You can't make this stuff up. They are REALLY pissing the Japanese off with this "dont rock the boat, dont overreact to the Norkies ICBM launch" line.

[aviator]

If I were the commanding General of Air Defense in Hawaii and confirmed the flight path was headed for impact in Hawaii, would I choose Zero’s orders to do nothing, or would I order the missile’s destruction as an American patriot?

[WellyP]

Shoot first and ask questions later!

[M. Dodge Thomas]

If I were the commanding General of Air Defense in Hawaii and confirmed the flight path was headed for impact in Hawaii, would I choose Zero’s orders to do nothing, or would I order the missile’s destruction as an American patriot?

The US has already put NK on notice that US forces and territory will be protected against threats created by the launch.

Admiral Keating, commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific, has stated that we are "fully prepared" to destroy the missile if it appears to be such a threat, and Secretary of Defense Gates specifically listed "an aberrant missile, one that was headed for Hawaii, that looked like it was headed for Hawaii" as an example of an exception to our policy of non-interference with the launch.