not just from the north, but “from the sea” . . .
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN0930288120070709?feedType=RSS&rpc=22&sp=true
U.S. cruise missile defense said possible in 14 months
Mon Jul 9, 2007 5:53PM EDT
By Andrea Shalal-Esa (excerpted)
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States could deploy a system to protect an area ranging from Washington to Boston from sea-based cruise-missile attacks within 14 months at a cost of “several billion dollars,” a top Lockheed Martin Corp. executive said on Monday.
David Kier, who formerly was deputy director of the National Reconnaissance Office, said the technologies needed to track, identify and destroy any such missiles launched from ships off the U.S. coastline already existed or were under development. “It just requires a will to do it,” he told congressional aides at a briefing. . .
Short-range cruise missiles are easy to hide, relatively cheap, and can carry a variety of warheads such as biological or chemical weapons, according to some experts. . .
Another speaker at the briefing, Jeff Kueter, president of the Washington-based George C. Marshall Institute, underscored the urgency of the threat. Tens of thousands of cruise missiles are available globally and 20 countries can build them, he said. North Korea fired up to two short-range missiles from its west coast last month, following a series of long- and short-range missile tests last year. He called for greater efforts to defend against cruise missiles, which he said were becoming the “weapons of choice” for potential competitor states and terrorist groups.
Cruise missiles were first fired at U.S. troops during the war in Iraq. But the United States itself, with 12,000 miles of coastline, provides ample targets for extremist groups, especially since cruise missiles can be easily be stowed inside a standard cargo container. The U.S. military has plans to protect troops, ships and overseas bases from cruise missile attacks, but it has no plan and no budget to protect the U.S. coastline, Kueter said.
Lockheed’s Kier said the United States needed an integrated plan to guard against attacks by cruise missiles, ballistic missiles and other manned and unmanned aircraft.
07/07/07 05h37 GMT+1
AFP News brief
NKorea close to making new missiles operational: US
(excerpted)
North Korea has successfully tested new short-range missiles and is close to making them operational, posing a threat to South Korea and Japan, a senior US defence official said.
Yonhap news agency quoted Richard Lawless, outgoing deputy undersecretary of defence as saying: “We have a problem with the new system because it’s much more accurate, it’s much more survivable than the huge Scud force ... already targeted on (South Korea).” Lawless, speaking to reporters Friday in Washington, said the US was “talking actively” to the South Korean government, and both governments viewed the matter with concern.
“You have for the first time in the North Korean inventory a solid-fuel, highly mobile, highly accurate system whose only purpose, given its range, is to strike (South Korea),” he was quoted as saying. . .
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200707/200707030022.html
Missiles Aimed at South Korean Cities
Updated July.3,2007 11:09 KST
(excerpt)
U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Burwell Bell said in a speech at the National Press Center in Seoul, ¡°North Korea last Wednesday conducted testing of advanced short range missiles — missiles specifically designed to attack (South) Korea, its armed forces, and its citizens.¡± He added, ¡°these missiles, in general, appear to be performing as they are designed.” Bell said the new missiles were upgraded versions of the old surface-to-surface class of missiles code-named “Frog” and use solid fuel, which means they are easy to move and launch rapidly. Bell said they could reach not only Seoul but other cities south of the capital due to their extended range. . .
As Bell said, if the missiles are highly mobile and capable of being fired rapidly, U.S. troops may have a tough time locating and destroying them. And if North Korea becomes capable of mounting these missiles with bio-chemical warheads, the threat becomes even greater.
Some South Korean officials are claiming that conventional North Korean weapons no longer pose a threat, due to the deployment of superior weapons in the South Korean military. But despite its severe economic limitations, North Korea is building up its military, specializing in nuclear and bio-chemical weapons, as well as long, mid and short-range missiles, special operations troops and long-range artillery. All of these are potentially fatal threats to South Korea. Long-range artillery can wreak tremendous destruction in the capital region over a short period of time, while missiles can simultaneously attack key military and civilian facilities in South Korea, including atomic power plants. North Korean special forces, numbering 100,000, have been described by one U.S. military official as being ¡°the biggest threat.¡± . . .
http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/dprk/nd-b.htm
(excerpted)
. . .Several seemingly unrelated bits of information reveals a potential new developing strategic threat from Iran and North Korea . For years it has been suggested that surface ship based ballistic missiles could threaten Western national security interest. The strategic advantage of such concepts is that the ship based systems could stand off from countries on the open ocean and not be seen or easily identified due to their stealth-ness commercial looks. Now the first evidence of hardware testing appears to indicate the early development of the required proof of concept technology to make this a reality from Iran and perhaps North Korea . When North Korea introduced the No-dong-B into its land mobile strategic systems inventory in 2003 it was the first of several events that suggested such a concept might come into being via the cooperative efforts of North Korea and Iran . Now Iran has introduced the first hadware testing with North Korean assistance.
Pending Container Ship Scud Threat?
It has been revealed that intelligence sources think North Korea may have helped Iran to successfully demonstrate a proof of principle test flight of a Scud-B from an Iranian container cargo ship container in 2006. This is possibly relating to the eventual deployment of a ship container based Scud-B or more probable ship container based No-dong-B IRBM. Exactly where and when this Scud-B flight test was demonstrated remains unclear. (31) and http://www.globalsecurity.org/wmd/world/dprk/nd-b.htmWhether the Scud-B or the No-dong-B are the ultimate intent is unclear at this juncture but the subsequent discussion may reveal the final intent. (31)
The Near TermContainerixed No-dong-B, Shahab-4 Ballistic Missile Threat?
The critical point noted by John Pike is that “this new missile has the advantage that it fits inside a standard 40 foot shipping container, which would be really hard to detect on container ship on the open ocean.” This author notes that is it would be easier if the warhead is interchangeable or unattached. That in fact appears to not be the case for this potential strategic application. This autonomous concept could be applicable to ship based containers, land based container trucks and is known to be based on the North Korean and new Iranian, transporter erector launcher (TEL) designs. . .
The missile is believed to be pre-fueled at the factory and armed with a nuclear warhead as a packaged unit. This game could conceivably be played by both Iran and North Korea. Pike further points out “that the small cargo ships can call in the North Korea or Iran port, get containers loaded with a missiles loaded on board, and roam the oceans waiting to fire it when the orders are received by preset on-board mother board command and control (CC) system.” As Pike notes, “Such a basing mode could be attractive to North Korea because under many scenarios it would under-fly the missile defense system currently being deployed by the United States. It would also require less complex technology than the unflown Taepodong-2 ICBM.” CPV
In 1998 the Rumsfeld Commission argued that the community needs to look at alternative deployment schemes. “Sea launch of shorter range ballistic missiles is another possibility. This could enable a country to pose a direct territorial threat to the U.S. sooner than it could by waiting to develop an ICBM for launch from its own territory. Sea launching could also permit it to target a larger area of the U.S. than would a missile fired from its home territory.”
“timing is everything” (Friday the 13th)
http://home.kyodo.co.jp/modules/fstStory/index.php?storyid=325453
N. Korea propose military talks with U.S. BEIJING, July 13 KYODO
North Korea on Friday proposed holding military talks with the United States in the presence of United Nations representatives to discuss peace and security in the Korean Peninsula, the country’s official Korean Central News Agency reported.
North Korea made the proposal in a statement released by the country’s liaison office at the inter-Korean truce village of Panmunjom.
==Kyodo
http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSTKV00281620070713
North Korea proposes military talks with U.S.: KCNA
Thu Jul 12, 2007 11:56PM EDT
TOKYO (Reuters) - North Korea is proposing holding military talks with the United States, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Friday, less than a week before a new round of talks on Pyongyang’s nuclear arms program is due to begin.
According to KCNA, the proposal would call for talks between North Korean and U.S. military officials to be attended by a United Nations representative, at a mutually acceptable place and time. The topic would be issues relating to peace and security on the Korean peninsula.
Six-party talks on the North’s nuclear program are due to start on July 18.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A40505-2003May10?language=printer
Sins of the Son
Kim Jong Il’s North Korea Is in Ruins, But Why Should That Spoil His Fun?
By Peter Carlson
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, May 11, 2003; Page D01 (excerpt)
” . . . The Dear Leader loves movies. He has collected more than 10,000 videos. He told an American diplomat that he possesses every Oscar-winning movie. He loves “The Godfather,” James Bond flicks, the “Friday the 13th” series, Daffy Duck cartoons, anything with Elizabeth Taylor. . .
All this family drama and trauma could drive a man crazy. And Jerrold Post, the GWU professor and former CIA psychiatrist, believes that the Dear Leader has a serious mental illness. “He has the core characteristics of the most dangerous personality disorder, malignant narcissism,” Post theorized in a recent psychological profile. The disorder is characterized by self-absorption, an inability to empathize, a lack of conscience, paranoia and “unconstrained aggression.” The Dear Leader, Post concluded, “will use whatever aggression is necessary, without qualm of conscience, be it to eliminate an individual or to strike out at a particular group.” . . .