Seoul: N. Korea fails in missile test-fire

A North Korean missile apparently failed shortly after launch, South Korea and the United States said.

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA >> A North Korean mid-range ballistic missile apparently failed shortly after launch Saturday, South Korea and the United States said, the second such test-fire flop in recent weeks but a clear message of defiance as a U.S. supercarrier conducts drills in nearby waters.

North Korean ballistic missile tests are proscribed by the United Nations because they’re seen as part of the North’s push for a nuclear-tipped missile that can strike the U.S. mainland. The latest test came as U.S. officials pivoted from a hard line to diplomacy at the U.N. in an effort to address what may be Washington’s most pressing foreign policy challenge.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that the North fired the unidentified missile from around Pukchang, which is near the capital Pyongyang, but provided no other details.

A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said the missile was likely a medium-range KN17 ballistic missile. It broke up a couple minutes after the launch, and the pieces fell into the Sea of Japan.

Analysts say the KN-17 is a new Scud-type missile developed by North Korea. The North also test-fired the missile earlier this month, but U.S. officials called that launch a failure.

North Korea routinely testfires a variety of ballistic missiles, despite U.N. prohibitions, as part of its weapons development. While shorter-range missiles are somewhat routine, there is strong outside worry about each longerrange North Korean ballistic test.

Saturday’s launch comes at a point of particularly high tension. U.S. President Donald Trump took an initial hard line with Pyongyang and sent a nuclearpowered submarine and the USS Carl Vinson aircraft supercarrier to Korean waters. His diplomats have since pivoted and are now taking a softer tone.

A South Korean military official said without elaborating that Saturday’s launch was believed to be a failure. He didn’t want to be named, citing office rules. The official couldn’t immediately confirm how far the missile flew or whether it had exploded shortly after launch.

Pukchang, just north of Pyongyang, isn’t far from where the North earlier this year tested new midrange solid-fuel missiles, which raised worry because they could be quickly fired from landbased mobile launchers and are harder to detect before launch.

North Korea has also testfired from inland a powerful liquid-fuel midrange missile, which outside experts call the Musudan and which has the potential to reach U.S. military bases in Guam.

Meanwhile, on Friday the United States and China offered starkly different strategies for addressing North Korea’s escalating nuclear threat as Trump’s top diplomat demanded full enforcement of economic sanctions on Pyongyang and urged new penalties. Stepping back from suggestions of U. S. military action, he even offered aid to North Korea if it ends its nuclear weapons program.

The range of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s suggestions, which over a span of 24 hours also included restarting negotiations, reflected America’s failure to halt North Korea’s nuclear advances despite decades of U.S.led sanctions, military threats and stop-and-go rounds of diplomatic engagement. As the North approaches the capability to hit the U.S. mainland with a nucleartipped missile, the Trump administration feels it is running out of time.

MASS COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST 3RD CLASS KELSEY L. ADAMS — U.S. NAVY VIA AP In this Tuesday photo released by the U.S. Navy, the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Wayne E. Meyer, left, is underway alongside the Republic of Korea multirole guided-missile destroyer Wang Geon during a bilateral exercise.