N. Korea test-fires missile, challenging South’s leader
— North Korea early today test-launched a ballistic missile that flew for half an hour and reached an unusually high altitude before landing in the Sea of Japan, the South Korean, Japanese and U.S. militaries said. The launch, which Tokyo said could be a new type of missile, is a direct challenge to the new South Korean president elected four days ago and comes as U.S., Japanese and European navies gather for joint war games in the Pacific.
It wasn’t immediately clear what type of ballistic missile was launched, although the U.S. Pacific Command said that “the flight is not consistent with an intercontinental ballistic missile.” Japanese officials, however, said the missile flew for about 30 minutes, traveling about 500 miles and reaching an altitude of 1,240 miles — a flight pattern that could indicate a new type of missile.
David Wright, co-director of the Global Security Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, said the flight indicates that the missile could have a range of about 2,800 miles if flown on a standard, instead of a lofted, trajectory; that would be considerably longer than Pyongyang’s current missiles.
The estimated range of the North’s Musudan missile is about 1,865 miles, Wright said, which is a little less than the distance between the U.S. Pacific island of Guam and North Korea. A North Korean missile would need to travel more than 4,970 miles to reach the U.S. West Coast.
Outside militaries will closely analyze what the North fired. While Pyongyang regularly tests shorter-range missiles, it is also working to master the technology needed to field nuclear-tipped missiles that can reach the U.S. mainland.