Kim Jong-un Claims
North Korea Close to Testing ICBM
by John Hayward 2 Jan 2017
North Korean dictator
Kim Jong-un claimed in a New Year’s Day
address that his military is close to testing an intercontinental ballistic
missile.
While the North Koreans have always made hyperbolic
claims about their technological and industrial prowess, some analysts believe
they really might be getting close to ICBMs, which would put them one step
closer to building intercontinental nuclear missiles.
“Research and development of the cutting-edge tech
weapons are actively progressing and strengthening our defense capabilities,
including last stage preparation of tests for intercontinental ballistic rocket
launch have been continuously succeeding,” said Kim.
CNN observes that his
speech also had plenty of the customary bombast, including praise for
North Korea as a “nuclear and military power in the east that formidable enemy
dare encroach on,” and promises to “keep increasing the military capabilities
for self-defense and preemptive striking capacity with a main emphasis on
nuclear force” if the United States and its “vassal forces” don’t discontinue
their threatening “war exercises.”
Reuters quotes analysts who say North Korea has been
“testing rocket engines and heat-shields for an ICBM while developing the
technology to guide a missile after re-entry into the atmosphere following a
lift-off.”
“The bottom line is Pyongyang is much further along in
their missile development than most people realize,” Melissa Hanham of the Middlebury
Institute of International Studies in
California declared, citing the “astounding” April test of a powerful
liquid-fueled engine as a milestone.
On the other hand, Reuters notes North Korea’s
test-firings of intermediate-range missiles have not gone well, and they
apparently haven’t developed the technology for atmospheric re-entry that a
true ICBM would require. Their claims of producing a nuclear warhead small
enough to fit inside a missile are also regarded as dubious.
In March, the Pentagon confirmed
North Korea’s development of a long-range missile that could potentially hit
the continental United States. While the exact capabilities of this weapon
system are in doubt, concerned analysts said it demonstrated how rapidly the
North Koreans were evolving their missile designs, producing variants unique
enough to acquire their own distinct system identifications.
South Korea’s Yonhap news
service notes that Pyongyang regards 2017 as an “opportune time” for
nuclear weapons development, as it believes both the U.S. and South Korea would
have an exceptionally difficult time interfering with its plans. Among the
other “key anniversaries” and significant dates Kim might choose for a
headline-grabbing ICBM test could be South Korea’s unexpectedly early
presidential elections, following the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye.
North Korea
Kim Jong Un is the
leader of North Korea, and met with Dennis Rodman in 2013.
Note: Dennis Rodman met
with Kim Jong Un in 2013, a losing
contestant on Celebrity Apprentice,
and a player for the Chicago Bulls.
Celebrity
Apprentice is a spin-off of The
Apprentice.
Donald
Trump is an executive producer & former star for The Apprentice, and the president-elect for the Donald Trump administration.
The Apprentice
is an NBC program.
NBCUniversal is
a subsidiary of NBC.
Jeff
Zucker was the president & CEO for NBCUniversal,
signed Donald Trump for 'The Apprentice',
is a director emeritus for the Robin
Hood Foundation, and the president of CNN
Worldwide.
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Robin Hood Foundation, the Harlem
Children's Zone, and the Aspen Institute (think tank).
George Soros
was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society, and a
benefactor for the Harlem Children's
Zone, and is the founder of the Soros
Economic Development Fund.
Richard S. Fuld
Jr. was a director at the Robin Hood
Foundation, a
benefactor for the Harlem Children's
Zone, and a trustee at the Middlebury
College.
Middlebury
Institute of International Studies at Monterey is a graduate school at Middlebury College.
Steven C.
Rockefeller is a professor emeritus at Middlebury
College, and was a director at the Soros
Economic Development Fund.
Frank Sesno is a
trustee at Middlebury College, and
was a White House correspondent for CNN.
CNN Worldwide
is a division of CNN.
Walter Isaacson
was the chairman & CEO for CNN,
is a director at the Bloomberg Family
Foundation, and the president & CEO for the Aspen Institute (think
tank).
Bloomberg
Family Foundation was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank).
Michael R.
Bloomberg is the founder of the Bloomberg
Family Foundation, Emma Bloomberg’s father,
was a donor for the Robin Hood
Foundation, and a benefactor for the Harlem
Children's Zone.
Emma Bloomberg
is a director at the Bloomberg Family
Foundation, Michael R. Bloomberg’s daughter, and was the chief
of staff for the Robin Hood Foundation.
Bloomberg
Family Foundation was a funder for the Aspen Institute (think tank).
James S.
Crown is the vice chairman for the Aspen Institute (think tank), a
member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and the president for Henry Crown and Company.
Commercial Club of Chicago, Members Directory A-Z (Past
Research)
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Lester Crown
was a lifetime trustee at the Aspen Institute (think tank), is a member
of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and the chairman for Henry Crown and Company.
Henry
Crown and Company is an investor in the Chicago Bulls.
Dennis Rodman was
a player for the Chicago Bulls, a losing
contestant on Celebrity Apprentice,
and met with Kim Jong Un in 2013.
Kim Jong Un met
with Dennis Rodman in 2013, and is
the leader of North Korea.
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