13 June 2011 Last updated at 05:53 ET

by Biodun Iginla and Xian Wan, BBC News

The USS McCampbell intercepted the ship on 26 May

Inside North Korea

A US warship intercepted and halted a North Korean vessel that was bound for Burma and was suspected of carrying missile technology, US media report.

The USS McCampbell caught up with the cargo vessel on 26 May, the New York Times quoted US officials as saying.

The destroyer approached the M/V Light and asked to board, but the North Koreans refused. The ship turned round and returned home a few days later.

Associated Press said the White House confirmed the substance of the story.

The M/V Light was intercepted south of Shanghai.

The Americans attempted to board on four occasions, according to the New York Times, but the navy did not force its way on to the cargo ship after permission was refused.

A few days later the M/V Light stopped and then turned back to its home port, tracked by US surveillance planes and satellites.

The New York Times said there had been several days of pressure from the US and some Asian nations.

Gary Samore, special assistant to President Barack Obama on weapons of mass destruction, told South Korean media that the ship may have been bound for Burma carrying small arms or missile-related items.

North Korea is subject to United Nations sanctions designed to curb its missile and nuclear programmes.

The United Nations Security Council imposed resolution 1874 in June 2009 following a nuclear test by North Korea, authorising member states to intercept the country's arms shipments.

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by Xian Wan and Biodun Iginla, BBC News

December 26, 2010: Since North Korea bombarded the South Korean island of Yeonpyeong last month, details of the military responses have been leaking out. North Korea was noticed using their anti-aircraft radars, especially for their missiles, right after the bombardment on November 22nd. The electronic beams used to guide the elderly North Korean anti-aircraft missiles could be detected all along the western portion of the border. The North Koreans also used some of their jammers to shut down South Korean attempts to use UAVs to scout the DMZ. Manned recon aircraft and satellites showed that the North Korean moved more anti-aircraft missiles and Silkworm anti-ship missiles to the west coast near the DMZ during, and after, the bombardment.

Most of the anti-aircraft missiles are either made in North Korea, or imported from China. North Korea has a lot of the Chinese versions (the HQ-2) of the Russian SA-2 systems. This is a system developed in the 1950s. The Chinese have upgraded the SA-2 with modern electronics, an improved warhead, better rocket motors and more maneuverability. But the North Koreans have many older models still in service, and many of these are probably of uncertainreliability. American electronic countermeasures can probably defeat all models of the HQ-2 and SA-2. Newer models of the HQ-2 have a range of 40 kilometers, and will hit the target 70 percent of the time (if there are no countermeasures.) The HQ-2 radars have a hard time dealing with stealthy aircraft, and the radar is needed to guide the missile to its target (via radio signals from the ground to the missile).

The Silkworm anti-ship missiles are Chinese, based on a 1950s Russian design. The two ton Silkworm didn't enter service until the 1980s, and is still found in the arsenals of nations who can't afford the more modern stuff. The Silkworm looks like a small jet fighter, without a cockpit. It has a range of about 90 kilometers and is effective against warships that have not turned on their defenses.

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by Xian Wan and Biodun Iginla, BBC News