North Korea preps another missile launch?

Seoul (South Korea): South Korea's Defence Ministry said on Monday that North Korea appeared to be planning another missile launch, possibly of an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) to show off its claimed ability to target the United States with nuclear weapons.

The South has carried out a simulated attack on North Korea’s nuclear test site in a huge show of force after Pyongyang detonated what it claimed was a hydrogen bomb. Seoul has also approved the complete deployment of a US anti-missile system in another sign it intends to address North Korean provocations with reminders of its own military firepower, while keeping the door open to dialogue.

The army and air force drills, held at an undisclosed location on Monday morning, involved launching of ballistic missiles in a simulated strike against North Korea’s Punggye-ri nuclear test site – the scene of Sunday’s controlled detonation of what Pyongyang claimed was a powerful hydrogen bomb capable of being loaded on to an intercontinental ballistic missile.

In addition to the missile drill, Seoul said on Monday that it would temporarily deploy four additional launchers of the US THAAD missile defense system, once it finished an environmental impact assessment. That proclamation quickly highlighted the difficulties of unifying other nations around a response to the North Korean threat.

China and Russia strongly oppose the THAAD deployment in South Korea with Beijing complaining that its powerful radar can probe deep into its territory, posing a security threat. Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Monday that any further US THAAD hardware placed in South Korea would force Moscow to "raise the question about our reaction -- about our military balances."