The Great Smoky Mountain Journal

Staff, Wire Reports

Posted: Monday, December 31, 2018 04:29 PM

Kim Jong Un Plans To Launch Record Rocket On Regime's 70th Anniversary Says Defector

The rocket would be outfitted with re-entry capability — a feat the Hermit Kingdom's last intercontinental ballistic missile wasn’t able to achieve — according to a defector who talked to a Japanese paper.

The defector, who was not identified but was said to be knowledgeable in the Hermit Kingdom’s missile program, told Japanese publication Asahi Shimbun earlier this week Kim laid out his plans during a meeting in Pyongyang on Dec. 11 and 12.

The rocket, called the “Unha-4,” will be an upgraded version of the long-range ballistic missile Unha-3, which was launched in 2012 and 2016 and put North Korea’s first satellite into orbit.

“The defector said there were likely two major objectives in launching a new long-range missile. One would be the use of a satellite for guidance and observation of future missile launches,” the publication stated. “The other could be to use the pro forma launch of a satellite into space to test whether the missile was capable of re-entry into the atmosphere.”

Kim’s scientists are also working to perfect the re-entry capability of the upgraded missile. North Korea's last ICBM, the Hwasong-15, was launched in late November did not survive re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere, a U.S. official told Fox News at the time. North Korea boasted the missile was “significantly more” powerful than its predecessor, the Hwasong-14, and could carry a “super-heavy nuclear warhead.”

A launch date for the new, huge rocket has been set for Sept. 9, when North Korea celebrates its 70th anniversary since its founding by Kim Il Sung. North Korea has often carried out nuclear and missile tests on important dates.

The body of the rocket has been completed, but it will take about six months for officials to prepare the launch, Asahi Shimbun reported.

Kim’s scientists are also working to perfect the re-entry capability of the upgraded missile. North Korea's last ICBM, the Hwasong-15, was launched in late November did not survive re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere, a U.S. official told Fox News at the time. North Korea boasted the missile was “significantly more” powerful than its predecessor, the Hwasong-14, and could carry a “super-heavy nuclear warhead.”

A launch date for the new, huge rocket has been set for Sept. 9, when North Korea celebrates its 70th anniversary since its founding by Kim Il Sung. North Korea has often carried out nuclear and missile tests on important dates.

The body of the rocket has been completed, but it will take about six months for officials to prepare the launch, Asahi Shimbun reported.