North Korea ‘can produce missile engines under its own steam’, US intelligence warns

NORTH KOREA has the ability to produce missile engines and, reports suggest, the country does not need to rely on imports of engines, US intelligence officials said last night.

“We have intelligence to suggest that North Korea is not reliant on imports of engines. Instead, we judge they have the ability to produce the engines themselves,” one of the officials said.

Rocket engines, probably from a Ukrainian factory, were obtained by the rogue state from illicit networks, according to a new study from a Londonbased think tank.

It comes as China last night urged the US and North Korea to urgently “put the brakes on” provocative actions and words after Kim Jong-un appeared to back away from a threat to fire missiles toward the US Pacific territory of Guam, host to US air and naval bases.

Early yesterday, Pyongyang’s state media said Kim has been briefed on a plan to fire missiles towards Guam.

He “examined the plan for a long time” and “discussed it” with commanding officers on Monday during his inspection of the command of the strategic force in charge of the north’s missile units, according to the Korean Central News Agency.

It said Kim would watch the actions of the US for a while longer before making a decision. “The US, the first to bring numerous strategic nuclear equipment near us, should first make the right decision and show through actions if they wish to ease tensions on the Korean peninsula and prevent a dangerous military clash,” Kim is cited as saying.

“He said that if the Yankees persist in their extremely dangerous reckless actions on the Korean peninsula and in its vicinity, testing the self-restraint of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the latter will make an important decision as it has already declared,” it said.

Kim’s remarks would appear to bring into play the large-scale military exercises held every year by South Korea and the US that are expected to start later this month. The north has always denounced the drills as provocative rehearsals for invasion and has in the past offered a moratorium on further nuclear and missile testing in exchange for their cancellation.