N. Korea believed to have revamped missile technology: source

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By Sam Kim
SEOUL, Feb. 5 (Yonhap) -- North Korea is believed to have improved its missile
technology to quicken the technical procedure for test-firing its most advanced
missile, a South Korean intelligence source said Thursday.
The source also confirmed that the recent object spotted by U.S. and South Korean
intelligence agencies is likely to be North Korea's longest-range missile, the
Taepodong-2.
Taepodong-2 missiles are believed to be capable of traveling up to 6,700
kilometers, meaning they can reach as far as Alaska and the U.S. West Coast,
according to weapons experts.
"They have tried to improve it for the last couple of years," the source said.
"We believe there has been improvement."
North Korea test-fired a Taepodong-2 model in July 2006, but outside intelligence
officials say the missile crashed shortly after take-off from a launching pad on
its east coast.
"We do not believe it would take as long as then" for Pyongyang to get ready to
test-fire a missile, the source said, adding the North has revamped its
Musudan-ri launch pad. The source refrained from saying which parts of the
missile could have been improved.
The comment came as North Korea has scrapped all cross-border deals with the
South and warned of an armed clash near their western sea border, sharply raising
tension on the divided peninsula.
The source added it remains unknown whether the North has developed the
technology to mount a nuclear warhead on the missile believed to have a
500-kilogram payload.
"The North is likely to have revamped its technology related to the fuel storage
and engine parts," said Baek Seung-joo, a senior researcher at the Korean
Institute for Defense Analyses.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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