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South Korea's National Intelligence Service says North Korea is unlikely to have injected fuel into a missile it may be about to launch, according to a member of the National Assembly¡¯s Intelligence Committee. Unnamed U.S. officials claimed Sunday the North had already fueled what they allege is an inter-continental ballistic missile at a launch pad in North Hamgyeong Province.
"At the National Assembly Intelligence Committee meeting, we were told the judgment of the NIS that it is difficult to determine whether the fuel has been loaded," Chung Hyung-keun, a Grand National Party member of the committee told reporters. "In the area of the launch platform, there are 40 fuel containers, an amount insufficient, it would seem, to provide the 15 tons of kerosene and 45 tons of oxidizing agent needed to fill the missile up."
The lawmaker said the NIS pointed out that the North had on a prior occasion set up a missile and left it for 50 days without fueling it, only to clear it off the platform later. The NIS did not specify when that incident took place.
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A satellite image of a presumed missile launch complex in North Korea taken by the U.S. commercial satellite Ikonos of Space Imaging Inc. A presumed tower-shaped 34 m tall launch pad is seen below right, while a 54 meter-high building presumed to be the assembly facility is below left. Above is a probable range control facility. /Yonhap
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The NIS also reported that it is still early to determine what the booster rockets will be loaded with -- a missile, or a satellite -- and more observation is necessary, he said. According to sources on the committee, the NIS initially detected movement of missile equipment at Scud missile platforms near Anbyeon, Gangwon Province in early May.
Meanwhile, the NIS confirmed that Kim Jong-il's youngest son Kim Jong-chol visited Germany, where he was caught on camera wearing an Eric Clapton t-shirt. The NIS said Kim junior went to Frankfurt last year as well while following the guitarist and singer¡¯s tour, according to committee sources. The spy agency said Kim is a huge fan and frequently wears a T-shirt with a picture of the man.
The NIS also confirmed a massive train collision in April last year that killed some 200 troops and civilians due to a failure in control equipment in North Hamgyeong Province.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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