You need to be registered if you want to read the whole article, but I quoted the most important part.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...526252,00.html
" ANY opening American salvo, most military experts assume, would flatten the complex at Yongbyon. Much harder to predict would be Kim's response. Unlike Saddam Hussein's shrivelled military arsenal, North Korea possesses enough long-range firepower to wreak havoc among its neighbours.
It has 500 Scud missiles, and up to 30 Nodong ballistic missiles with a strike range of 650 miles. Both could be loaded with chemical or biological weapons.
North Korean scientists are believed to have produced stocks of anthrax, cholera and plague. According to a South Korean defence ministry document, scientists in Seoul, the nation's capital, have also identified eight chemical production plants and six storage facilities for chemical weapons such as mustard gas or nerve agents.
Another ballistic missile, the Taepodong-2, has an estimated range of more than 3,700 miles, which means it could reach Alaska or parts of Russia.
North Korea also possesses a huge conventional artillery force with 12,000 pieces dug in within range of Seoul. Military analysts have calculated that on the first day of any war, it could be hit by 500,000 shells.
If Washington strikes Yongbyon, would Kim dare strike back? He could target American bases in South Korea or even the US naval base at Yokosuka, Japan. While the Americans would deploy Aegis-class destroyers with missile interceptors, the region's worst fear is that any conflict might not be limited to a brief exchange of missiles and may result in a nuclear disaster.
"The question is, can the US deliver a clean, knockout blow that resolves the crisis?" said John Pike, one of Washington's leading military analysts. "My guess is that blowing up Korea could be very messy."
Most officials in Beijing, Seoul and Tokyo believe Kim will use his weapons to take the region to the brink of calamity, then pause to extract the political and economic concessions he needs to prop up his regime.
The trouble with brinks of calamity is that some leaders do not see them in time - particularly dictators cocooned in personality cults. Both Bush and Kim in their different ways, have taken the road to confrontation without knowing where it will end."
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...526252,00.html
" ANY opening American salvo, most military experts assume, would flatten the complex at Yongbyon. Much harder to predict would be Kim's response. Unlike Saddam Hussein's shrivelled military arsenal, North Korea possesses enough long-range firepower to wreak havoc among its neighbours.
It has 500 Scud missiles, and up to 30 Nodong ballistic missiles with a strike range of 650 miles. Both could be loaded with chemical or biological weapons.
North Korean scientists are believed to have produced stocks of anthrax, cholera and plague. According to a South Korean defence ministry document, scientists in Seoul, the nation's capital, have also identified eight chemical production plants and six storage facilities for chemical weapons such as mustard gas or nerve agents.
Another ballistic missile, the Taepodong-2, has an estimated range of more than 3,700 miles, which means it could reach Alaska or parts of Russia.
North Korea also possesses a huge conventional artillery force with 12,000 pieces dug in within range of Seoul. Military analysts have calculated that on the first day of any war, it could be hit by 500,000 shells.
If Washington strikes Yongbyon, would Kim dare strike back? He could target American bases in South Korea or even the US naval base at Yokosuka, Japan. While the Americans would deploy Aegis-class destroyers with missile interceptors, the region's worst fear is that any conflict might not be limited to a brief exchange of missiles and may result in a nuclear disaster.
"The question is, can the US deliver a clean, knockout blow that resolves the crisis?" said John Pike, one of Washington's leading military analysts. "My guess is that blowing up Korea could be very messy."
Most officials in Beijing, Seoul and Tokyo believe Kim will use his weapons to take the region to the brink of calamity, then pause to extract the political and economic concessions he needs to prop up his regime.
The trouble with brinks of calamity is that some leaders do not see them in time - particularly dictators cocooned in personality cults. Both Bush and Kim in their different ways, have taken the road to confrontation without knowing where it will end."
~TheDoc - ICQ7765825
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