N. Korea Test-Fires 2 Short-Range Missiles

SEOUL, South Korea, July 2, 2009 — -- North Korea test-fired a pair of short-range missiles off Sinsang-ni on the east coast today, according to the South Korean Defense Ministry, but the South Korean military sees no signs of a ballistic missile test in the coming week, according to Seoul-based Yonhap News, which cited an unnamed military source.

"It's pretty clear that they won't and can't test-fire any long-range ones at the moment. But when it comes to short ones, all they have to do is pull the trigger," said Jong-Kun Choi, professor of international studies at Yonsei University. "But all that would do is to show off to the world that they have a lot of short-range missiles in stock, and that's about it."

That assessment counters several reports from Japanese media that North Korea is highly likely to fire a long-range missile toward Hawaii. Kyodo News Agency on Wednesday speculated that the date of that missile launch could be July 4 or July 8, which is the 15th anniversary of the death of North Korea's founder, Kim Il Sung.

Japan's top-selling newspaper, the Yomiuri Shimbun also reported last month that analysis and intelligence gathered by U.S. reconnaissance satellites showed that a Taepodong-2 type long-range missile was believed to have been brought from a missile manufacturing facility near Pyongyang to the Tongchang-ri facility on North Korea's west coast May 30.

North Korea's Gitdaeryeong missile launch site off the east coast in Gangwon province has also been under tight surveillance by neighboring countries. Yonhap News says there are no indications of movements of missile-launch vehicles in the area, but short-range missiles, such as scud or land-to-ship missiles, however, can be fired "at anytime," according to the news agency.