North Korea Threatening War? Missile Launch Site Prepared Amid Kim Jong Un's Aggressive Comments

North Korea may be readying a site to test an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), according to a post published Tuesday by an analyst on a Johns Hopkins University website.

Writing at the university's North Korea-focused website 38 North, Joseph S. Bermudez Jr. provided evidence that the country's Kalma Ballistic Missile Test Site near an airport was being prepared to test an ICBM. He wrote that the site has been used on "at least four occasions" as a spot to test intermediate-range ballistic missiles (IRBM) and could be capable of launching an ICBM.

"Moreover, Kalma might be a logical choice since it: 1) has been designed and previously used to test Musdan IRBMs, also a road-mobile missile like the new North Korean ICBMs; 2) can easily be supported by the infrastructure of the Kalma International Airport; and 3) like previous failed Musudan tests, a catastrophic failure of an ICBM would not impact North Korean soil," wrote Bermudez.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has regularly threatened the West, most notably the United States and South Korea. He has also increasingly focused on developing an ICBM capable of carrying a nuclear warhead, stoking fears of war. South Korea's 2016 Defense White Paper found that the North has a stockpile of weapons-grade plutonium sizeable enough for 10 nuclear warheads. The South's military also believes North Korea has developed an ICBM capable of traveling at least 6,200 miles, although others doubt if the country's technology is reliable.

North Korea responded with further threats after President Donald Trump's administration announced it planned to ramp up missile defense systems. The comments came on the 29th anniversary of the country capturing a U.S. ship called the Pueblo.

"The U.S. will face a position more miserable than that in the Pueblo case if it forgets that lesson and frantically pursues new ways to provoke war against the north," said North Korea's Central TV station.