WHAT? NORTH KOREA MAY HAVE ACCIDENTALLY FIRED MISSILES AT CHINA?!?

TOKYO - A report in Japan says North Korea may have fired two surface-to-air missiles at China today, by accident.
The Kyodo News agency says the missiles were launched near the North's border during a training exercise, although security sources cited by the agency don't know exactly when they were launched or where they landed.

Japan's Defense Ministry declines comment, other than to say Japan "constantly" monitors the military activities of its neighbors. An unidentifed official quoted by Kyodo says the missiles were not a threat to Japan.

Link: http://www.ktre.com/Global/story.asp?S=4601291&nav=2FH5

I think North Korea has become quite estranged from China, though I hadn't heard there was open hostility.

Who knows? Accidents happen. We do that shit all the time.

probably thought they saw an imperialist running dog.

but the body says fired two surface-to-air missles at China???

I believe is what they are saying.

This isn't WWIII.

It's not as if North Korea accidentally took out a Chinese town. Even if these missiles crossed into Chinese airspace, doesn't look like any damage was done. China will probably reprimand North Korea, whoever made the mistake will probably wind up in one of North Korea's infamous labor camps.

Even if the missile had crossed South Korean airspace, it wouldn't mean WWIII. These two countries have been exchanging gunfire across the DMZ for quite some time. Heck, there have been full-fledged naval skirmishes between the two countries over the past dozen years without it blowing up into full scale war.

i wasn't thinking as i typed the title. it's fixed now and i added the link

:scared:

TOKYO - North Korea fired two surface-to-air missiles near its border with China Wednesday and they apparently landed in North Korean territory, a Japanese news agency reported, citing security sources.

Kyodo News agency cited an “Asian security source” as saying the missiles were fired by mistake in the direction of China during a military drill, and the missiles appeared to have landed in North Korean territory.

But the agency also cited a “Western military source” as saying the short-range missiles were test-fired in an eastern direction from the North’s eastern coast, toward the Sea of Japan.

The agency said it couldn’t immediately reconcile the conflicting reports. The exact time of their launch was unknown, Kyodo said.

Japan's defense ministry refused to comment, saying it could not disclose information on specific activities. But Japan "constantly monitored the military activities of neighboring countries," a spokesman said on condition of anonymity, citing regulations.

Kyodo quoted an unnamed defense official as saying the launches "did not threaten Japan's security."

Yang Chang-seok, spokesman for South Korea's unification ministry, which deals with North Korean affairs, said the ministry could not confirm the report.

Pyongyang shocked Tokyo and other nations when it test-fired a ballistic missile over northern Japan in 1998.

Analysts say North Korea is developing long-range missiles capable of reaching Alaska, Hawaii or perhaps other states on the West Cost of the United States.

Japan and the United States have since started to develop a joint ballistic missile defense system, and Tokyo has said it will launch two spy satellites by March 2007 to monitor North Korea and other trouble spots.

Link: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11724954/

:shrug:

Sorry, couldn't help myself...

:spank:

:rofl:

...dammed near gave Saddam a medal for the accident that killed 37 Americans.

Don

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Stark_(FFG-31)

Stark was deployed to the Middle East Force in 1984 and 1987. She is remembered for the incident of May 17, 1987 when she was struck by two Exocet missiles from an Iraqi Mirage fighter during the Iran-Iraq War. The fighter had taken off from Shaibah at 20:00 and had flown south into the Persian Gulf. Shortly after being routinely challenged by the frigate at around 22:10 the fighter fired two Exocet ASM missiles. The frigate did not detect the missile attack and both missiles struck without warning. The first hit the port-side hull and surprisingly went right through and exited the starboard hull just at the water line. The second missile followed right after it, entering almost at the same point, and left a three metre by four metre gash when it exploded in crew quarters. Thirty-seven crew were killed and twenty-one were injured. Prior to the gun turret explosion onboard Iowa, it had been proclaimed as the worst US Naval peacetime disaster. The frigate was afire but this was brought under control by its crew during the night and the ship returned to Bahrain under her own power. $142 million was spent repairing the vessel.

According to Iraqi officials, the pilot who attacked the Stark was not punished. Though American officials believed he had been executed, journalist Robert Fisk, in his book The Great War For Civilisation, quotes an ex-Iraqi Air Force commander who says the pilot is still alive.

Dann singe ich ein Lied fuer Dich
Von 99 Luftballons
Auf ihrem Weg zum Horizont
Denkst Du vielleicht grad' an mich
Dann singe ich ein Lied fuer Dich
Von 99 Luftballons
Und dass sowas von sowas kommt

I *had* been trying not to worry so much about accidental missile launches this decade, what with all the new things to worry about and all. I guess we don't really have that luxury, though...

This is a good reminder of how fragile any and all "peace" really is.