North Korea is sharing technology information with Iran, which carries out missile tests on North Korea's behalf, the official said on condition of anonymity.

A leading military publication, Jane's Defense Weekly, reported that North Korea was developing two new ballistic missile systems that "appreciably expand the ballistic-missile threat."

It said Pyongyang was helped by the purchase, through a Japanese trading company, of 12 decommissioned Russian Foxtrot-class and Golf II-class submarines sold for scrap in 1993.

In an article published Aug. 4, Jane's said the Japanese scrap dealer sold the submarines with their missiles and launch systems removed, but "due to factors such as the time and expense of their removal, these boats retained significant elements of the missile launch system, including their launch tubes and stabilization subsystems."

The weekly said the two new missile systems appeared to be based on a decommissioned Soviet submarine-launched ballistic missile, the R-27. It said North Korea appeared to have acquired the know-how from Russian experts working for missile manufacturer VP Makeyev Design Bureau.

The Japan Times Weekly: Aug. 14, 2004
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