After a long wait, North Korea’s “Musudan” intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM), a weapon with a reported range of 2,500 to 3,000 km, has made its first public appearance. Described as a copy of the Soviet R-27 submarine-launched ballistic missile (a.k.a. RSM-25, a.k.a. SS-N-6, a.k.a. Serb), it has never been flight-tested in North Korea, as far …
Another Kleine Brogel Bombspotting
by | 2010-10-08 | 19 Comments
So, I got a little note the other day from the Bombspotters: After we noticed our January filmed visit of Kleine Brogel airbase caused some interesting discussions, we have put some effort in a more extensive investigation. To our surprise we even were able to make a picture inside an aircraft shelter with WS3-installation. You …
Persistent Engagement and DPRK Transition
by | 2010-10-06 | 2 Comments
Paul Carroll sends along a very thoughtful note (also published on the Ploughshares website) about the perils of waiting for North Korea’s apparent leadership process to play out. Don’t get to clever, Paul suggests, because you just might miss your best chance and not even know it: Transition or Transfer in North Korea? Asia watchers …
North Korea’s Carrot and Stick
by | 2010-10-05 | 4 Comments
Last week, David Albright and Paul Brannan of ISIS published a DigitalGlobe image showing new construction in the area of the demolished cooling tower of the 5 MW(e) reactor at Yongbyon. They were circumspect in their analysis, concluding only that “the actual purpose of this excavation activity cannot be determined from the image and bears …
