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N Korea rocket test shows ‘meaningful progress’: Seoul

SEOUL — North Korea’s latest rocket engine test showed “meaningful progress” in its missile capabilities, Seoul said on Monday (March 20), as the nuclear-armed state steps up its controversial weapons development programmes.

A man watches a TV news programme showing an image that North Korea's Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported of a ground test of a new type of high-thrust rocket engine that leader Kim Jong Un is calling a revolutionary breakthrough for the country's space programme. Photo: AP

A man watches a TV news programme showing an image that North Korea's Rodong Sinmun newspaper reported of a ground test of a new type of high-thrust rocket engine that leader Kim Jong Un is calling a revolutionary breakthrough for the country's space programme. Photo: AP

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SEOUL — North Korea’s latest rocket engine test showed “meaningful progress” in its missile capabilities, Seoul said on Monday (March 20), as the nuclear-armed state steps up its controversial weapons development programmes.

The North’s leader, Mr Kim Jong-Un, oversaw the “successful” test of the powerful new rocket engine, state media said on Sunday, in a move apparently timed to coincide with a trip to Asia by new United States Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

It was the latest in a series of moves by Pyongyang, which have recently included the firing of four missiles to its east in what it described as practice for an attack on US army bases in Japan.

“The latest test is believed to have made some meaningful progress in engine functions,” Seoul’s defence ministry spokesman Lee Jin-Woo told reporters.

“But we need more analysis on its exact propulsive power and applicable use,” said Mr Lee.

The North’s last ground test of a high-powered rocket engine — which can be used in missiles — was in September last year, and also observed by Mr Kim.

The weekend’s experiment came as Mr Tillerson, the top US diplomat wrapped up his trip to Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing, having declared Washington would drop the “failed” approach of “strategic patience” with Pyongyang.

In Seoul, Mr Tillerson also warned that US military action against Pyongyang was possible — a sharp divergence from China’s insistence on a diplomatic approach to its neighbour, which it has long protected.

The impoverished, isolated North insists that it needs nuclear and missile weapons for self-defence against “hostile forces”, including the US and its ally South Korea.

It has conducted five nuclear tests since 2006 — three under Mr Kim — and launched a number of missiles as it seeks to develop a weapon capable of reaching the US mainland.

Expert opinions vary on how advanced the North’s missile capabilities are, but most agree it has made significant progress in recent years.

A growing threat from the North has prompted Seoul and Washington to begin installing a powerful US missile defence system in the South — angering Beijing, which views it as a threat to China’s own missile capabilities.

The deployment of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) has prompted angry protests in China and boycotts of South Korean businesses, and further strained ties between Beijing and Washington. AFP

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