The missile has never been successfully flight-tested, and the April 15 effort ended in what the Pentagon described as “fiery, catastrophic” failure – apparently exploding seconds after launch.
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Yonhap says it learned from an unidentified government official that the military “is picking up signs which indicate” that the North will launch the Musudan “in the near future”.
Kim Il Sung is the North’s founder.
“The congress will lay the groundwork for Kim Jong-un to prove his legitimacy as the sole leader”, said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies.
The test missile flew only 30 kilometres, far short of the 300km range needed to qualify as a short-range ballistic missile (SLBM). The launch was conducted from North Korea’s only ballistic missile submarine, Gorae (“Whale”), while submerged off the country’s east coast.
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – Facing mounting worldwide pressure over its nuclear and missile ambitions, North Korea has set a date for its biggest political convention in decades next week that is expected to bolster young dictator Kim Jong Un’s grip on power.
“There is a possibility that North Korea could adjust or refine the byeongjin policy”, said Kim Yong-hyun, a professor of North Korean studies at Dongguk University.
Meanwhile, the North Korean foreign minister proposed that his country was ready to halt its nuclear tests if the United States abandons its military exercises in the region.
The crippling global sanctions imposed on North Korea for its nuclear tests have been taking its toll on the country, as Kim announced in late March that North Korea could be headed for another starvation like the one that killed an estimated 3.5 million people in the 1990s.
Obama’s response came while fielding questions about the North’s recent submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) test on April 23 and Ri’s proposal in a joint press conference after a summit with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Hannover.
Tensions have been running high on the divided Korean peninsula since the North’s last nuclear test in January, and Pyongyang has issued repeated threats of a direct attack on the Blue House, which houses President Park Geun-Hye’s offices and residence.
Rival nations are nervously watching the North’s defiance of United Nations resolutions aimed at curbing its nuclear and ballistic missile technologies, expect another missile to be blasted within days.
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The US president stressed that America could “destroy North Korea with our arsenals”, but added that there’s “no easy solution” to the problem as strike on Pyongyang would have great humanitarian costs and also affect neighboring South Korea.
