Another missile test on the cards

PYONGYANG might be preparing for another missile test, South Korea’s spy agency said yesterday, just days before US President Donald Trump visits the divided peninsula.

“There is a possibility that North Korea will launch a missile as active movements of vehicles have been detected at a missile research facility in Pyongyang,” the National Intelligence Service told a closed-door parliamentary audit, the Yonhap news agency reported.

In July, Pyongyang launched two missiles apparently capable of reaching the US mainland – described by leader Kim Jong-un as a gift to “American bastards” – and followed up with two missiles that passed over Japan and its sixth nuclear test, sending tensions rocketing.

The US president will arrive in Seoul on Tuesday as part of an Asian tour.

Amid a flurry of diplomatic visitors to the region, Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said yesterday that Pyongyang’s weapons ambitions had become a global threat, with the US mainland and Europe coming within reach of its missiles.

“I think we all understand that a war will be catastrophic and extremely dangerous not only for people living in this region but for global peace and security,” Stoltenberg said.

But the defence alliance was always ready to respond and to counter any attack from any direction, he said. – AFP