S Korea boosts navy might in standoff
Posted
South Korea has deployed its most sophisticated high-speed patrol boat armed with ship-to-ship missiles to the tense western sea border with North Korea, the defence ministry says.
"The navy's cutting-edge high-speed missile patrol boat, the Yoon Young-Ha, is being deployed in the Yellow Sea today," a navy spokesman told reporters.
The move comes amid high tensions with the North, which has threatened attacks on South Korea and is reported to have stepped up military drills near the western border.
South Korea's Yonhap news agency reports that North Korea seems to be preparing to test-fire a medium-range missile from its south-east coast.
The missile is apparently being prepared for launch from a North Korean missile base in Anbyon County, about 100 kilometres north-east of Seoul, Yonhap said, quoting an unnamed lawmaker briefed by military officials.
It said the missile was believed to be a Rodong with a range of 1,300 kilometres or a new medium-range missile with a range of 3,000 kilometres.
A South Korean defence ministry spokesman said he could not confirm the report.
The North has launched a series of short-range missiles since its second nuclear test on May 25. US and South Korean officials have said there are signs that it may also be preparing to test-fire a long-range missile.
- AFP
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