North Korea’s Missile Success Is Linked to Ukrainian Plant, Investigators Say

[Suppressed]

North Korea’s Missile Success Is Linked to Ukrainian Plant, Investigators Say
By WILLIAM J. BROAD and DAVID E. SANGER    AUG. 14, 2017
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/14/world/asia/north-korea-missiles-ukraine-factory.html

North Korea’s success in testing an intercontinental ballistic missile that appears able to reach the United States was made possible by black-market purchases of powerful rocket engines probably from a Ukrainian factory with historical ties to Russia’s missile program, according to an expert analysis being published Monday and classified assessments by American intelligence agencies.

The studies may solve the mystery of how North Korea began succeeding so suddenly after a string of fiery missile failures, some of which may have been caused by American sabotage of its supply chains and cyberattacks on its launches. After those failures, the North changed designs and suppliers in the past two years, according to a new study by Michael Elleman, a missile expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

...

Mr. Elleman was unable to rule out the possibility that a large Russian missile enterprise, Energomash, which has strong ties to the Ukrainian complex, had a role in the transfer of the RD-250 engine technology to North Korea. He said leftover RD-250 engines might also be stored in Russian warehouses.

But the fact that the powerful engines did get to North Korea, despite a raft of United Nations sanctions, suggests a broad intelligence failure involving the many nations that monitor Pyongyang.

Since President Barack Obama ordered a step-up in sabotage against the North’s missile systems in 2014, American officials have closely monitored their success. They appeared to have won a major victory last fall, when Mr. Kim ordered an end to flight tests of the Musudan, an intermediate-range missile that was a focus of the American sabotage effort.

But no sooner had Mr. Kim ordered a stand-down of that system than the North rolled out engines of a different design. And those tests were more successful.

American officials will not say when they caught on to the North’s change of direction. But there is considerable evidence they came to it late.

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Excerpt.  Read more at https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/14/world/asia/north-korea-missiles-ukraine-factory.html

[Suppressed]

Lots of background on the history of the Norks' espionage efforts for decades.

[driftdiver]

Capt Obvious at work again.

[Suppressed]

Capt Obvious at work again.

Which hypothesis/theory is correct, if it's so obvious?

[Free Vulcan]

THIS is what scares me so much about the Norks - their mercenary enablers they buddy with. They can go from backwater bush league to dropping something or somethings like several EMP detonations on our West Coast far quicker than what would be their natural technical evolution. That's all it would take to devastate the economy and send the US into chaos.

It doesn't seem like anyone is accounting for these outside players, and I hope if so it doesn't come back to bite us on the butt.

[TomSea]

fwiw, a denial from Ukraine.

Ukraine never supplied missile engines to DPRK, - Turchynov
Ukrainian Defense and Security Council said that this false information most likely was provoked by Russian special services
16:43, 14 August 2017

Ukraine’s defense and aerospace complexes did not supply weapons and military technology to North Korea, and the false information spread by some foreign media about the alleged supplies of missile technology by the Ukrainian Yuzhmash to the DPRK was most likely triggered by Russian special services. This was announced by the press service of Ukraine’s Security Council Secretary Oleksandr Turchynov.

“This information is groundless, has a provocative character and was most likely provoked by Russian special services to cover their own crimes,” Turchynov said.

Related: Japan deploys Patriot anti-missile systems in case of attack by DPRK

“Ukraine has never supplied missile engines and any missile technologies to North Korea. We believe that this anti-Ukrainian campaign was provoked by Russian special services to cover their participation in North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs,” he said.

Continued: http://112.international/ukraine-top-news/ukraine-never-supplied-missile-engines-to-dprk-turchynov-19845.html

[Wingnut]

Can you imagine!  LOL

[GtHawk]

Can you imagine!  LOL

They would maybe be singing?
By the sea, by the sea, by the beautiful sea!
You and me, you and me, oh how happy we'll be!
When each A-10 wave comes a-rolling in

[Wingnut]

We need to bring the pain!