[TheSun] MOUNTAIN TENSION North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s visit to the sacred Mount Paektu is a sign he’s plotting his most extreme missile launch yet, experts warn North Korean leaders' visits to the mystical Mount have often preceded important decisionsWAR-hungry North Korean despot Kim Jong-un could be set to launch his most extreme missile launch yet, according to experts.
Kim visited Korea’s most mystical mountain, Mount Paektu, on Friday, and this is the sign that could mean he’s plotting some significant military action in the near future.
North Korean leaders’ visits to the sacred Mount have often preceded important decisions.
Kim last visited the location in September 2016, right after North Korea’s fifth nuclear test.
He was also there in April 2015, just before executing former defense chief Hyon Yong-chol, and in November 2013, before executing his own uncle Jang Song-thaek among other top officials.
"Kim Jong-un is following in his father’s footsteps in visiting the mountain at times of important decisions regarding the state," a South Korean government insider said to Korea Joongang Daily.
He "needs to deliver tangible results on the country’s politics, economy and diplomacy. So it is likely Kim thought through what he is going to present as his vision for next year."
State news agency KCNA explained Kim’s visit as a celebration "after his big achievements in November".
At the end of November North Korea unveiled ICBM Hwasong-15, a new nuclear missile capable of hitting anywhere on Earth.
In September, Kim conducted its sixth and most powerful nuclear test and fired an intermediate-range missile over Japan.
Previously, North Korea successfully launched the country’s first inter-continental ballistic missile (ICBM) in July 2017, the first to have the capability of reaching US territory.