Kim Jong Un's Secret Missile Bases In North Korea Not New: Seoul

South Korea's presidential office on Tuesday dismissed a new report on North Korea's "undisclosed" missile sites. Beyond Parallel, a group at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said it had located 13 out of an estimated 20 missile operating bases undeclared by Pyongyang.

The report was based on satellite imagery suggesting North Korea is continuing to develop ballistic missile sites at more than a dozen locations, amid stalled discussions over the country's nuclear weapons program between Pyongyang and the U.S. The images, taken earlier this year, of the Sakkanmol missile operating base were released Monday, stating it is currently "active and being reasonably well-maintained by North Korean standards" and houses short-range ballistic missiles typically capable of traveling over 500 miles. The base is located just over 50 miles from the South Korean border.

However, the Blue House claimed the state intelligence communities of South Korea and the United States had earlier acquired relevant information about the base. But the report went too far to call the North's continued activity a "great deception" as it has no specific agreement to dismantle or disclose the facilities mentioned.

"The dispersed deployment of these bases and distinctive tactics employed by ballistic missile units are combined with decades of extensive camouflage, concealment and deception practices to maximize the survival of its missile units from pre-emptive strikes and during wartime operations," Beyond Parallel's report said.

"Sakkanmol currently houses a unit equipped with SRBMs but could easily accommodate more capable medium-range ballistic missiles (MRBMs)," it said.

Speaking about the report, Blue House spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said the source of the analysis of the Sakkanmol base is a commercial satellite.

"The intelligence authorities of South Korea and the U.S. have far more detailed information from military satellites and are closely monitoring (it)," Kim said, adding the facilities have nothing to do with intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) or intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBMs). He stressed that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has not promised to shut down the base, and there has been no accord or negotiations in connection with it.

In the Singapore summit talks with President Donald Trump, the North Korean leader had agreed to permanently close his nuclear program if the U.S. and South Korea stopped the military drills. Despite the promise, there has been little progress toward denuclearization. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s meeting with his North Korean counterpart, Kim Yong Chol, was canceled last week amid a stalemate in denuclearization talks. State Department representative Heather Nauert said the meeting that was set for last Thursday in New York “will now take place at a later date.”

“We will reconvene when our respective schedules permit," Nauert said. "Ongoing conversations continue to take place. The United States remains focused on fulfilling the commitments agreed to by President Trump and Chairman Kim at the Singapore Summit in June."

Meanwhile, Trump also recently reassured critics that talks with Kim Jong Un about denuclearization were still occurring.

“We are in no rush,” Trump said on Nov. 7. “The sanctions are on. The missiles have stopped. The rockets have stopped. The hostages are home.”