North Korea preparing to develop submarine-launched ballistic missiles on west coast

北, SLBM 실거리 발사 임박 Satellite imagery of North Korea's main military shipyards shows the regime is ramping up its development of submarine-launched ballistic missiles... or SLBMs. Experts say the North is close to developing a SLBM that is longer and more powerful than its previous one. Park Soyun reports. There are strong indications North Korea's submarine-launched ballistic missile program is advancing and a new SLBM barge will soon be up and running at Nampo Navy Shipyard on the country's west coast. South Korean and U.S. intelligence agencies are also monitoring North Korea's Sinpo shipyard, on the country's east coast, where North Korea's SLBM development station is located. Using satellite imagery,... those agencies say the North appears to have developed a SLBM that is three meters longer than the previous Pukkuksong-1. There's speculation the missile has a considerably increased range since it can store more fuel. (Korean) - "If the missile is three meters longer,... the overall weight is likely to be 28 tons. If the Pukkuksong-1's projected range is 1,600 kilometers, the new one could have a range of up to 4,000 kilometers. That would put Guam within its range." North Korea hinted that it was in the process of developing new weapons last July when it intentionally leaked photos that are speculated to be of the new missile, the Bukkuksong-3. North Korea is also suspected of constructing a 3,000 ton submarine that can load upgraded SLBMs. Unusual movements have also been detected on North Korea's west coast. Barges that are used for testing SLBMs were spotted at the Nampo shipyard in November. There are concerns that SLBMs previously tested in the East Sea have been moved to the West Sea in preparation for more test launches. North Korea tested its first Bukkuksong-1 missile in May 2015 and fired another last August with a range of 500 kilometers, however it was not a normal fire but a vertical fire. (Korean) - "North Korea has a track record of testing missiles from its east coast first... then moving the tests to the west coast once the missiles are deemed safe enough to fire across the country." Experts say that,... if North Korea has SLBM capabilities in the West Sea as well, it will pave way for more clandestine tests, increasing threats on the Korean peninsula. Park Soyun, Arirang News. Arirang News Facebook:   / arirangtvnews   ------------------------------------------------------------ [Subscribe Arirang Official YouTube] ARIRANG TV:    / arirang   ARIRANG RADIO:    / music180arirang   ARIRANG NEWS:    / arirangnews   ARIRANG K-POP:    / arirangworld   ARIRANG ISSUE:    / arirangtoday   ARIRANG CULTURE:    / arirangkorean   ------------------------------------------------------------ [Visit Arirang TV Official Pages] Facebook:   / arirangtv   Twitter:   / arirangworld   Instagram:   / arirangworld   Homepage: http://www.arirang.com ------------------------------------------------------------ [Arirang K-Pop] YouTube:    / arirangworld   Facebook:   / arirangkpop   Google+: http://plus.google.com/+arirangworld