North Korea Military News, Reports, Data, etc.

I hope North Korea fires a long range missile over into the Sea of Japan and it will be a fine opportunity to test the BMD on the JMSDF ships

If USN is nearby they could also engage the missile

BMD has had many tests this would be the best of them

Few years back North Korea did threaten to fire such a missile and JMSDF and USN were there to intercept but the missile never came, shame

Miragedriver said:

Mystery threat to American warships is likely North Korean


(The Week) In 2013, the U.S. Navy's Pacific Fleet hinted at a mysterious and "newly discovered threat" to American warships. Whatever it was, it was serious  —  and had America's admirals spooked.

The Navy awarded a $65-million contract to the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory to develop the system within a "critically short" time frame.

The Naval Research Laboratory and defense contractor ITT Excelis had developed a prototype of the electronic warfare system in 2012, and wanted help from industry to field the first system by 2014. The Pacific Fleet needed up to 24 of the systems.

The missile was indeed a Kh-35. Made by Russian defense contractor Zvezda, the Kh-35 flies at Mach 0.8 at just 10 to 15 meters above the ocean surface. It has a range of 70 miles.

Exactly how and why North Korea got the Kh-35 is a good question. North Korea and Russia have become increasingly close during the Kim Jong Un era, and Pyongyang could have bought the missiles from Moscow.

Click to expand...

Mirage...please provide a link to such an article that you quote like this on SD.

As to this "threat," this is not really breaking news as it broke two years ago, and the US had been seeking to counter it behind the scenes for over a year at that time.

So:

1) Let's try and keep the "News," thread related to new news.

2) Always provide a link to articles that you quote and post here.

Jeff Head said:

Mirage...please provide a link to such an article that you quote like this on SD.

As to this "threat," this is not really breaking news as it broke two years ago, and the US had been seeking to counter it behind the scenes for over a year at that time.

So:

1) Let's try and keep the "News," thread related to new news.

2) Always provide a link to articles that you quote and post here.

Click to expand...

Link to news article:

I was unaware, and it was "new" news to me. I guess I'm behind the times. I will not utilize this news source for any posts any more since this is the second time it has been shot down. I will stick to the Telegraph and the Wall Street Journal from now on.

Miragedriver said:

Link to news article:

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.

Click to expand...

Thanks, Mirage. I will read the whole thing and take a look at the site.

Somebody's been having fun with Photoshop! Now the question is who and why?

Wed May 20, 2015 6:04am EDT
North Korea modified submarine missile launch photos, says U.S. official
SEOUL | BY JAMES PEARSON

Photographs showing a North Korean missile launched from a submarine were manipulated by state propagandists and the country may be years away from developing such technology, analysts and a top U.S. military official said on Tuesday.

North Korea, sanctioned by the United States and United Nations for its missile and nuclear tests, said on May 9 it had successfully conducted an underwater test-fire of a submarine-launched ballistic missile which, if true, would indicate progress in its pursuit of missile-equipped submarines.

On Wednesday, North Korea warned the United States not to challenge its sovereign right to boost military deterrence and boasted of its ability to miniaturize nuclear warheads, a claim it has made before and which has been widely questioned by experts and never verified.

But North Korea is still "many years" from developing submarine-launched ballistic missiles, U.S. Admiral James Winnefeld told an audience at the Centre for Strategic & International Studies in Washington on Tuesday.

"They have not gotten as far as their clever video editors and spinmeisters would have us believe," said Winnefeld, who is vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Analysis seen by Reuters from German aerospace engineers Markus Schiller and Robert Schmucker of Schmucker Technologie appeared to support Winnefeld's statement.

The Munich-based pair said photos of the launch were "strongly modified", including reflections of the missile exhaust flame in the water which did not line up with the missile itself.

North Korea, which regularly threatens to destroy the United States, had a record of offering faked proof to claim advances in missile technology, Schiller and Schmucker said, such as poorly built mockups of missiles on display at military parades in 2012 and 2013.

The pair agreed with analysis posted by experts on the websites 38north.org and armscontrolwonk.com that the missile was likely launched from a specially designed submerged barge, and not from a submarine

A photo on state television showed a missile high in the sky leaving a trail of white smoke, whereas other photos from state media showed no white smoke, suggesting the two photos were of different missiles with different propulsion systems, Schiller and Schmucker said.

South Korea stood by its position that the photos appeared authentic. "We haven't changed our stance that the rocket was fired from a submarine and flew about 150 meters out of the water,” a South Korean military official said.

The North's National Defence Commission, the main ruling body headed by leader Kim Jong Un, said on Wednesday the submarine-based missile launch was "yet a higher level of accomplishment in the development of strategic attack means".

(Additional reporting by Ju-min Park; Editing by Nick Macfie and Jeremy Laurence)

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PanAsian said:

Somebody's been having fun with Photoshop! Now the question is who and why?

Photographs showing a North Korean missile launched from a submarine were manipulated by state propagandists and the country may be years away from developing such technology, analysts and a top U.S. military official said on Tuesday

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Click to expand...

big surprise here.

Most of us thought that North Korea having a SLBM was not credible.

They not only likely do not have a missile, they likely do not have a submarine capable of it.

As to who? I would say that some of the dear leader's technicians did the PS.

As to why? Internal propaganda for the masses, and to keep the outside guessing.[/QUOTE]

Kim Jong-Un Purges More North Korean Military Leadership As Soldiers' Food Rations Slip


North Korean leader Kim Jong-un surveys participants at the country's Fifth Conference of Training Officers, in this undated photo released by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on May 1, 2015.Reuters/KCNA

Instability is plaguing North Korea’s top ranking officials as the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un, the nation’s top brass. Following last week’s dramatic reports of the execution of North Korea’s defense minister for reportedly falling asleep during a high-level meeting, new reports claim that the vice armed forces minister and other military officials have either been executed or demoted for failing to improve food rations for soldiers.

According to South Korea’s citing South Korean intelligence reports, So Hong-chan, the armed forces vice minister was last seen in action in late March. So was appointed to his role in November 2013 and was frequently photographed with Kim at high-profile state events, such as visits to the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the embalmed bodies of Kim’s father and grandfather, Kim Jong-il and Kim Il-sung lie. During this year’s annual visit, So was nowhere to be seen. The South Korean newspaper reports that under Kim Jong-un’s leadership, the average tenure of top officials does not typically exceed a year.

Intelligence sources say that So and his staff were removed from their positions after failing to deliver on demands made by Kim to provide increased food rations for the nation’s military. Kim has shifted focus on developing and expanding North Korea’s military capabilities. Satellite photographs over Pyongyang show North Korea’s from 2010 to 2012, raising international concern of the nation’s nuclear ambitions. Along with investing in technical capabilities, Kim is reportedly also investing in the country’s manpower.

Under So’s leadership, Korean People’s Army generals were ordered to increase food rations for soldiers and make sure they were well fed. Intelligence sources said that daily food rations were instead cut in order to boost rice reserves. Military rice reserves were severely depleted after Kim dipped into the supply to feed soldiers during special commemorative events earlier this year on the birthdays of the late Kim Jong-il and Kim Il-sung on Feb. 16 and April 15, respectively.

After a particularly dry winter, industry experts are concerned North Korea's poor harvests will compound the country’s already scarce food supplies. North Korea’s wheat and barley crops will be affected by the lack of rainfall this winter and continued to be below average in 2015. “We’re concerned about seed scarcity and the low level rain and snowfall,” John Aylieff, the deputy Asia director at the U.N.’s World Food Program, told the from Pyongyang. “All of these things are raising concerns about the winter harvest this year.”

When Kim took the helm in late 2011, he mostly inherited his father’s cabinet and advisers. Over his tenure, however, Kim has gotten rid of many of his father’s loyal confidants, some of whom were family members. In December 2013, reports said Kim had executed his uncle by marriage, Jang Song Thaek, a key figure in maintaining economic relations with regional ally China.

Link:


Back to bottling my Grenache

Jeff Head said:

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big surprise here.

Most of us thought that North Korea having a SLBM was not credible.

They not only likely do not have a missile, they likely do not have a submarine capable of it.

As to who? I would say that some of the dear leader's technicians did the PS.

As to why? Internal propaganda for the masses, and to keep the outside guessing.

Click to expand...

Especially on those pictures of him waiting aboard some ship to see the launching of an ICBM off a submarine. In real life that's just plain dangerous.

Equation said:

Especially on those pictures of him waiting aboard some ship to see the launching of an ICBM off a submarine. In real life that's just plain dangerous.

Click to expand...

Yep.

Crazy...and never happened.

Him standing there on a fairly light vessel out to sea and a SLBM erupting from the surface a few hundred feet away.

Pure propaganda.

Kim Jong Un Purge Of North Korea Leadership Tests Loyalty Of The Public


Amid military , threats of and nuclear threats, Kim Jong Un is reportedly starting to lose the loyalty of his country's public. Continuing political chaos in North Korea has led to signs of wavering allegiance to Kim’s leadership, and it will be difficult to reverse.

A new by Daily NK, a Seoul-based website, reports that criticism of Kim’s decision making and seemingly volatile leadership style is escalating as North Koreans become more comfortable criticizing the central government.

“Kim’s popularity among citizens has rapidly declined,” Daily NK reports, quoting a woman from South Pyongyan province, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “People say that, considering the fact that Kim has executed dozens of high-ranking officials within the few years since coming to power,’ there’s no hope left.’ ”

Last month, South Korean intelligence reported the latest purge of high-ranking military officials under Kim’s leadership. Hyon Yong Chol, the minister of the People’s Armed Forces, was allegedly executed for falling asleep during a high-level meeting that Kim attended. Following that, South Korean news site Chosun-Ilbo reported that So Hong Chan, the vice minister of the armed forces had also been purged from his position after failing to deliver on Kim's request to increase food rations for soldiers.

Instability at the top has planted a seed of doubt regarding the leadership capabilities of Kim, who inherited the position in December 2011 following the sudden death of his father and predecessor Kim Jong Il. “Officials in rural regions and security agents are far more inclined to air grievances more publicly regarding the leadership,” another unnamed source in North Korea’s North Pyongyan told Daily NK. “Not only residents but even cadres sneer when they see footage broadcast idolizing the leader. Many just say, ‘This sucks,’ and switch off the TV.”

Reports of this alleged behavior coincide with what North Korean analysts have also suspected about Kim’s tenure at the helm. “Internally, there does not seem to be any respect for Kim Jong Un within the core and middle levels of the North Korean leadership,” Michael Madden, a North Korea expert at Johns Hopkins University’s U.S.-Korea Institute, said, according to .

In response, North Korea has taken measures to downplay Kim’s leadership overhauls and military purges. Last week, authorities on chatter about Hyon’s execution in hopes of stopping rumors and avoiding the danger of “inciting chaos.”

“In a political lecture for citizens held this year, footage of Kim Jong Il declaring his son to be a successor ‘10 times superior’ to himself was incorporated,” the South Pyongyan woman said. “Many have mocked this, saying, ‘This superior figure is purging officials left and right? Hope is lost on him.’ ”

Link:


Back to bottling my Grenache