US expert: North Korea will launch missile on December 17

(Baonghean.vn) - US experts predict that North Korea may be planning a new missile launch on Sunday (December 17) to commemorate the death anniversary of late President Kim Jong-il.

Daily Mail reported that a research institute in Washington DC (USA) has just issued a warning about the activities of "weapons of mass destruction" from North Korea and predicted that December 17 would be chosen by Pyongyang to test-launch a new ballistic missile.

Leader Kim Jong-un may be planning a missile launch on December 17 to mark the anniversary of the death of his father, the late President Kim Jong-il. Photo: AFP

Explaining this prediction, American experts said that the late President Kim Jong-il, father of leader Kim Jong-un, died on December 17, 2011. For many years, on this day, Pyongyang has celebrated the anniversary with missile test launches and military parades.

This prediction is partly based on Chairman Kim Jong Un's statement on December 12 that he will turn North Korea into "the world's strongest nuclear power," despite pressure from the US after the launch of the Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile on November 29.

More notably, North Korea's KCNA news agency reported on December 13 that the country's scientists and workers are continuing to produce "new weapons and equipment" to enhance its nuclear capabilities in both quantity and quality.

Satellite images show a lot of activity at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site. Photo: AP

Leader Kim Jong-un also stressed that North Korea can develop and produce more diverse weapons than what it has now.

In addition, another evidence shows that North Korea is stepping up nuclear weapons activities at the Punggye-ri nuclear test site through satellite images provided by 38 North. The images also clearly show that North Korea is digging a new tunnel in the context that North Korea may be preparing for the next nuclear test.

Wisdom