|
Seoul and Washington confirmed at a defense information exchange meeting in June 2002 that North Korea had operationally deployed an additional battalion of Rodong-1 missiles, the Ministry of National Defense revealed Friday in its new booklet outlining the participatory government's defense policy. North Korea's arsenal of Rodong-1 missiles, deployed since 1997, increased to two battalions' worth.
This the first time that the ministry officially confirmed the additional deployment of Rodong-1 missiles. Japan is expected to react sensitively to the news; the range of the missiles is 1,300 kilometres, covering much of Japan.
One battalion of North Korean Rodong-1 missiles consists of nine mobile launchers and more than 30 missiles, sources said, but it is estimated that North Korea actually has a total of 100-200 Rodong-1 missiles. The ministry did not disclose the locations of the recently deployed missiles, but the source said Sinori in North Pyeongan province was the likely site.
The Rodong-1 is 15.3 meters long with a payload capacity of 989 kilograms. Its accuracy is judged as poor, however.
(Yoo Yong-won, kysu@chosun.com )
|
