South Korea plans to equip an Aegis destroyer with 40 new missiles obtained from the United States, Reuters reported Saturday (see GSN, June 25).
The acquisition follows North Korea's May 25 nuclear test and reports that it might continue its series of missile tesss with the launch of a long-range weapon.
The Aegis is an advanced, ship-based system built to destroy incoming missiles at a range of up to 100 miles. News of the missile purchase was first reported by the Yonhap News Agency (Cheon Jong-woo, Reuters, June 28).
Seoul on Friday also announced plans to invest in heavy weaponry and sophisticated surveillance technology to counter the North Korean missile and nuclear threat
"Our military will strengthen its capability for precision strikes on North Korea," said Lt. Gen. Kim Ki-soo.
"If it becomes clear that North Korea is moving to hit us with [its] nuclear and missile arsenal," another South Korean military official told the Yonhap News Agency, "we will hit its bases as quickly as possible to prevent launches no matter where they are."
"But," he added, "we don't by any means have any intention of considering a pre-emptive strike on North Korean bases when there is no clear evidence of an imminent attack" (Agence France-Presse/Daily Times, June 26).