North Korea Missile Could Launch Early Next Week, Japanese Officials Warn

If true, this would by North Korea’s first long-range missile launch since 2012, when it successfully placed an object into Earth orbit.

U.S. Department of Defense Spokesman Commander Bill Urban told Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency Wednesday that North Korea must focus instead on taking “concrete steps toward fulfilling its worldwide commitments and obligations”. North Korea also tested what it called a submarine-launched ballistic missile in 2015.

Satellite imagery of North Korea’s Tongchang-ri missile test site shows there are possible preparations in place for the launch, reported Japan’s Kyodo news agency.

This comes amid discussions among UN Security Council members for fresh sanctions against Pyongyang after it announced it completed its fourth nuclear test on January 6.

But analysis of satellite imagery gathered over the past few days suggests the defiant Hermit Kingdom is readying itself for a new outrage.

The North is also thought to be working to miniaturise a nuclear warhead to mount on a missile, but many experts think it is still some way away from perfecting the technology.

It is claimed the latest test involved a hydrogen bomb, a more sophisticated type of nuclear weapon with much greater yields than ordinary atomic weapons.

Secretary of State John Kerry and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi exposed differences about how best to approach the problem.

But the US has cast doubts about the claim, saying initial analysis is not consistent with the North’s claims.

The regime in Pyongyang fired a long-range rocket before each of its previous three nuclear tests, which resulted in a tightening of global sanctions.