N.K. fires new type of missile off east coast

North Korea has launched a short-range missile from its Musudan-ri rocket launch site on the country`s east coast, a South Korean government official said yesterday.

"What the North has launched this time appears to be different from what it had launched (previously)," the official said. "It is a new type of a land-to-air missile," the official said.

North Korea launched the missile, with an estimated range of 160 km, into the East Sea at around 6:12 p.m., according to the official.

The North has been firing a series of missiles since Monday, when it said it successfully conducted its second nuclear test.



Defense sources here said Chinese fishing vessels appeared to be rapidly withdrawing from the West Sea where there are fears of a possible clash between South and North Korean naval forces following Pyongyang`s threats of a military clash.

"Chinese fishing ships operating near the Northern Limit Line began withdrawing Thursday," the source said. More than 280 Chinese vessels were fishing near the NLL for crab earlier this week but the number has reduced to about 140, according to the Defense Ministry.

The de-facto inter-Korean maritime border was the venue for deadly naval clashes between the two Koreas in 1999 and 2002.

"Our speculation is that China fears possible clashes and voluntarily cleared out the area, or it could also be because of the fishing ban period that starts on June 1," said one ministry official on the condition of anonymity.

He said the ministry is investigating whether North Korea requested the Chinese ships to withdraw to possibly prepare for a naval strike.

Tensions have been mounting near the de-facto inter-Korean maritime border following North Korea`s warning Tuesday of military action that came after South Korea announced its full participation in the Proliferation Security Initiative, a U.S.-led campaign to stop the transfer of weapons of mass destruction and related materials.

Although the campaign is not specifically targeted at any nation, the North believes it to be a scheme of attack.

Further escalating tension, the North has said it also will no longer be bound to the armistice, which was the result of the 1950-53 Korean War.

The United Nations Command, however, rejected the claim, saying that "the armistice remains in force and is binding on all signatories, including North Korea."

By Kim Ji-hyun and news reports



(jemmie@heraldm.com)