US missile designed for nukes launched

Test sends Minuteman flying 6,759 kmfrom California to Pacific Ocean

The latest test of the Minuteman, an intercontinental ballistic missile designed to carry nuclear warheads, would have been unnoticed had it not been made as war loomed over the Korean Peninsula. The Minuteman fired from a California US air base reached an imaginary target more than 6,000 kilometers away in the Pacific Ocean, an apparent reminder to North Korea.

VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE— An unarmed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile was launched from California early on Wednesday in a test of the weapons system that is part of the US nuclear force.

The missile blasted off from a silo at 12:03 a.m. from Vandenberg Air Force Base and delivered a single reentry vehicle to a target approximately 6,759 kilometers away at Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific Ocean, the Air Force Global Strike Command said.

The launch command was issued via an air launch control system aboard a Navy E-6 Mercury jet.

“Tonight’s launch was an important demonstration of our nation’s nuclear deterrent capability,” Col. John Moss, commander of Vandenberg’s 30th Space Wing, said in a statement.

“Test launches like this one are vital to validating the effectiveness and readiness of our operational nuclear systems, so it is critical that they are successful,” Moss said.

Operational tests of Minuteman 3 missiles are conducted regularly but the timing of Wednesday’s launch amid US tensions with North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs drew criticism from the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, which has advocated against nuclear weapons for more than 30 years.

“When it comes to missile testing, the US is operating with a clear double standard: It views its own tests as justified and useful, while it views the tests of North Korea as threatening and destabilizing,” said David Krieger, president of the organization, in a statement on its website on Monday.

“What is needed is diplomacy rather than military provoca- tion. Threats, whether in the form of tweets, nuclear-capable aircraft carrier groups, or nuclear-capable missile launches, only increase the dangers to us all,” he said.

President Donald Trump has in recent weeks ordered an aircraft carrier and other Navy vessels into the region in a show of force to deter North Korea, which on Tuesday conducted large-scale, live-fire artillery drills.

On Wednesday, the White House hosted all 100 senators for a classified briefing on North Korea.—