Kim visits likely missile launch site

The Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) top leader Kim Jong-il visited the province where Pyongyang says it is preparing to launch a satellite into space, state-run media said yesterday, though many fear it is actually planning to test-fire a long-range missile.

The DPRK's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said that Kim met with workers in Hoeryong in North Hamgyong province, the city where his mother was born. Hoeryong is about 180 km from Hwadae, the county where Pyongyang said on Tuesday it is preparing to launch an experimental satellite.

Hwadae also is the site for the 2006 test launch of the DPRK's longest-range missile, the Taepodong-2, which has the potential to reach Alaska.