North Korea Preparing Long-Range Missile Test

North Korea appears to have stepped up preparations for a long-range missile test. Satellite images of a launch site taken at the end of March contain evidence that these preparations are more extensive than previously understood, according to an analysis by the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies.

The launch is scheduled for mid-April. North Korea says it will fire a satellite into orbit to study the country’s crops and natural resources. But Washington says North Korea actually uses such missile launches to test its delivery systems for nuclear weapons.

Any launch will violate an accord between North Korea and the United States that involves shipping U.S. food aid in exchange for a moratorium on missile tests, nuclear tests, and development at the Yongbyon nuclear facility.

Washington says that it has already put food shipment plans on hold.

These images and announcements indicate that even with a new leader installed, North Korea is playing the same old game. The launch would be the fourth of its kind since 1998, when Pyongyang sent a long-range rocket over Japan.

The latest rocket launch took place in 2009 and led to condemnation from the United Nations. North Korea then walked away from six-nation nuclear disarmament talks, and weeks later, it conducted its second nuclear test.

Expect more of the same from North Korea. The United States will continue to allow North Korea to play diplomatic games that buy more time for its weapons program. This is yet another sign of America’s broken political willpower.