South Korea on Alert for Possible North Korea Missile Launch

By Heejin Koo

April 4 (Bloomberg) -- South Korea’s government is holding emergency meetings as North Korea prepares to launch a rocket capable of reaching Alaska as early as today. President Lee Myung Bak plans to convene a meeting National Security Council immediately after any launch.

South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said in an e-mailed statement that it will hold a task-force meeting today at 8:30 a.m., presided by Wi Sung Lac, the nation’s chief negotiator at six-nation nuclear talks aimed at denuclearizing North Korea’s nuclear program.

Lee said yesterday in a group interview he’s “almost certain” North Korea will launch a rocket or a satellite as early as today. A launch wouldn’t be “in their benefit,” he said. U.S. President Barack Obama also urged North Korea yesterday to halt its “provocative” launch plans.

Its Unification Ministry, charged with dealing with inter- Korean matters, advised civic groups yesterday to refrain from visiting North Korea. The ministry organized a task force last week and will continually be briefed by intelligence officials throughout the day, said a ministry official who declined to be identified. The Defense Ministry began operating a 24-hour emergency shift yesterday ahead of the launch.

The South Korean government suspects that North Korea’s claims that it will launch a communications satellite between April 4 and 8 is a guise to test an inter-continental ballistic missile. The Kim Jong Il regime has vehemently denied South Korea’s suspicions.

Monitoring, Progress

Tensions between North Korea and South Korea, technically still at war since their 1950-53 conflict ended without a peace agreement, have increased since Lee took office in February last year, promising “stricter” monitoring of inter-Korean economic ventures and demanding progress on its nuclear disarmament.

North Korea, which tested a nuclear weapon in 2006, has scrapped military and political agreements with South Korea and threatened “strong military steps” against what it deems as South Korea’s confrontational policies. It also imposed border restrictions with South Korea.

Six-nation denuclearization efforts, also involving the U.S., China, Japan and Russia, have stalled since December after North Korea rejected international demands that inspectors be allowed to remove samples from its Yongbyon reactor, the source of the regime’s weapons-grade plutonium.

South Korea, the U.S., and Japan have said any launch of a rocket, whether it’s a missile or a satellite, would be subject to new sanctions by the United Nations Security Council.

North Korea test-fired a long-range Taepodong-2 missile in July 2006, three months before it tested a nuclear device, prompting Security Council sanctions.

Prevent Sales

Resolution 1718, adopted in October 2006 after North Korea’s nuclear test, asks governments to prevent the sales of arms and equipment for nuclear work, as well as luxury goods, to Kim’s regime.

North Korea’s military on April 2 vowed a “thunderbolt of revenge” if Japanese defense forces try to shoot down the rocket. North Korea will hit back against “any small move to shoot down our peaceful satellite launch,” the communist nation’s joint chiefs of staff said in a statement carried by the official Korea Central News Agency.

The warning came three days after North Korea vowed to wage war against Japan if it tried to intercept the missile. Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada deployed guided-missile units around Tokyo on March 27 and ordered the interception of any North Korean object entering his country’s airspace.

This has been one of the bigger news stories here in the USA, this is a serious situation. A world war could be brewing.

Heat wrote:

South Korea, the U.S., and Japan have said any launch of a rocket, whether it’s a missile or a satellite, would be subject to new sanctions by the United Nations Security Council.

Well they would wouldn't they, and since North Korea doesn't have an ally on the security council they don't have the same immunity to them most other countries have.

Kim would be a fool to drop all this, its his only real safeguard from being pounded into the dust considering the desperate situation he has got himself into.

If it is indeed a satellite, which would really be the wise move on Kim's behalf, then the other countries are gonna look pretty paranoid about the dangerous satellite launches and will create skepticism next time he wants to launch.

I have doubts that Kim would try and make a run for japan, while South Korea is where it is, and the US still has a pretty phenomenal amount of firepower lying unused, its most likely a bluff I would say.

guh more shit.

I think if Korea goes ahead and launches the missile, it would be real stupid of them tbh. i mean they would just be endangering their own people, their own country. i dont think the US would keep anyone alive if that missile is launched. and Obama being on the throne aint helping. who knows? he might attack them first like what happened in afghanistan or something...and i wont be surprised if obama does that.

shit imagine if this happens (goddamn)...how many kids would be killed....uuuuuugh. this sucks.

@Edible, I hope it's a bluff

@Cheese, I think Japan is the one N. Korea should be worried more about than the USA.