N Korean ICBM on the move
Says report; Trump offers 'sophisticated' arms to South Korea, Japan amid tensions
South Korea yesterday said an agreement with the United States to scrap a weight limit on its warheads would help it respond to North Korea's nuclear and missile threat after it conducted its sixth and largest nuclear test two days ago.
South Korean officials believe more weapons tests by the reclusive state are possible, despite international outrage over Sunday's nuclear test and calls for more sanctions against it.
South Korea's Asia Business Daily, citing an unidentified source, reported that North Korea had been observed moving a rocket that appeared to be an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) towards its west coast.
The rocket started moving on Monday and was spotted moving only at night to avoid surveillance, the newspaper said.
South Korea's defence ministry, which warned on Monday that North Korea was ready to launch an ICBM at any time, said it was not able to confirm the report.
Analysts and South Korean policymakers believe North Korea may test another weapon on or around Sept 9, when it celebrates its founding day.
North Korea's fifth nuclear test fell on that date last year, reflecting its tendency to conduct weapons tests on significant dates.
North Korea says it needs to develop its weapons to defend itself against what it sees as US aggression.
South Korea, after weeks of rising tension, is talking to the United States about deploying aircraft carriers and strategic bombers to the Korean peninsula, and has been ramping up its own defences.
US President Donald Trump and his South Korean counterpart, Moon Jae-in, agreed on Monday to scrap a warhead weight limit on South Korea's missiles, South Korea's presidential office said, enabling it to strike North Korea with greater force in the event of war.
Seoul was previously restricted to a maximum warhead weight of 500 kilograms (1100 pounds) on its ballistic missiles, according to a bilateral agreement with the United States signed in 2001.
Trump yesterday said he would allow Japan and South Korea to buy more "highly sophisticated" US military equipment, amid soaring tensions after Pyongyang's latest atomic test.
"I am allowing Japan & South Korea to buy a substantially increased amount of highly sophisticated military equipment from the United States," Trump said in a tweet.
Trump's statement came after North Korea on Sunday detonated what it described as a hydrogen bomb designed for a long-range missile, sparking global alarm with what was by far its most powerful test to date.
On Monday, the South's military launched a volley of ballistic missiles simulating an attack on the North's nuclear test site.
Trump did not elaborate on the kind of weaponry and equipment he had in mind.
South Korea and the United States are technically still at war with North Korea after the 1950-53 Korean conflict ended with a truce, not a peace treaty.
Both sides have thousands of rockets and artillery pieces aimed at each other across the world's most heavily armed border, but the North's rapid development of nuclear weapons and missiles has altered the balance, requiring a stronger response from South Korea, officials say.