One of Ours

North Korea is reported to be building two underground launching sites aimed at deploying an intermediate-range ballistic missile with a target distance of up to 4,000 kilometers following successful development last year.

The missile is capable of reaching U.S. military bases in Guam or possibly Hawaii, the new report said.

"Two missile stations in Yangduk in western Pyeongan Province and in Heocheon in northeastern Hamgyeong are under construction with 70 to 80 percent completed," the Chosun Ilbo newspaper reported, citing an unidentified South Korean official.

The source said a U.S. spy satellite has detected about 10 new ballistic missiles and mobile launching pads at these bases...

...A first working group meeting will be held in Beijing May 12 under the six-nation talks that have been struggling to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue since the fall of 2002.

Although shorter in range, these missiles are similar to these Russian missile systems. These Transporter Erector Launchers (TEL) can hide in bomb-proof underground bunkers, and then drive out via road or rail to a simple concrete luanch pad for firing. This is much cheaper and easier than building underground silos.



One way or another the Bush administration is going to have to do something about these sites before they are finished, at which point it will be too late. Kim Il Jong will be able to blackmail every country in the region, not just South Korea.