N. Korea reportedly boosts arsenal

SEOUL -- North Korea is preparing to deploy a new intermediate-range ballistic missile that can reach US bases in Guam and possibly Hawaii, South Korean newspapers reported earlier this week.

North Korea has been trying for years to develop ballistic missiles that could reach the United States, but it has been widely assumed that such missiles were still in the developmental stage.

If confirmed, the reports would suggest that the communist country has made more progress than previously thought -- an especially alarming development given that the regime is also pursuing nuclear technology.

The reports cited unnamed South Korean officials saying that intelligence satellite had recently uncovered evidence of two missile bases under construction in North Korea. Missiles observed at the sites reportedly did not resemble North Korea's better-known Rodong missiles.

"We presume these bases to be for a new kind of ballistic missiles -- not Rodongs or Scuds," a high-ranking South Korean official was quoted as telling the Chosun Ilbo, a conservative daily newspaper.

The newspaper quoted the official saying that the missile is likely to have a range of at least 1,800 to 2,500 miles, making it capable of reaching key Pacific bases in Guam and Okinawa; because it could be launched from a vehicle, it might be able to reach Hawaii.

"I believe this is an entirely new missile," said Kim Tae Woo, a specialist on the North Korean military at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses in Seoul. He said there was no evidence North Korea had test-fired the new missile but the building of bases suggests the nation is confident enough in its accuracy to be preparing to deploy it.

The intelligence about the missiles was said to have been originally gathered by a US intelligence satellite. Kim suggested that South Korea and the United States have not been eager to publicize news of the latest missile for diplomatic and political reasons. "Washington doesn't want to see anything shocking like this come out before the presidential election. The South Korean government usually keeps silent about what North Korea is doing," said Kim.

The South Korean government has been trying to nudge North Korea into adopting more conciliatory positions in ongoing six-country talks over the development of nuclear weapons. Talks on economic cooperation between the estranged Koreas opened yesterday in Pyongyang. Working level talks on the nuclear issue are set for next week in Beijing.

The South Korean defense ministry declined to answer questions about the intermediate-range missiles at a media briefing. Officials from the US Embassy in Seoul also declined to comment.

North Korea's new missile bases were reportedly first detected late last year and are now said to be 70 percent complete. One is in Yangdok, 50 miles east of Pyongyang, and the other in Hochon in North Hamgyong province.

North Korea's best-known missile is the Rodong, which has a range of 810 miles, making it capable of reaching most of Japan. In 1998, North Korea test-fired a long-range missile called the Taepodong I into the Pacific Ocean. But that missile is considered to be in the development stage, as is the Taepodong II, a missile with a range of more than 4,000 miles.