North Korea has begun preparations to fire three or four medium-range missiles, the South Korean military reported to the National Assembly's National Defense Committee on Tuesday. Defense Committee members quoted military officers as saying this when they visited the command post of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. They said the North is preparing to fire medium-range missiles near Anbyon-gun, Gangwon Province. The South has detected several vehicle mobile launchers carrying missiles in the area and assumes that the North will fire more than three missiles.Officers do not rule out that North Korea will launch an intercontinental ballistic missile from a launch pad in Dongchang-ri, North Pyongan Province on the west coast at the same time.
The medium-range missiles are most likely of the Rodong type with a range of 1,300 km or a new type with a range of 3,000 to 4,000 km which the North deployed warfare-ready in 2007.
| Not sure if the latter is an earlier version of the Taepodong missile ... |
Meanwhile, there are fears of a provocation as a way to get the North Korean public on side for the succession of leader Kim Jong-il's third son, Jong-un. Grand National Party lawmaker Kim Jang-soo said, "The North could carry out various kinds of provocations. There is a likelihood that it will carry out terrorist acts in relation to the succession."