North Korea test-fires ICBM days before U.S. election
North Korea said Thursday that it had test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile that is designed to strike the continental United States.
SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea said Thursday that it had test-fired an intercontinental ballistic missile that could strike the continental U.S. for the first time in almost a year, days before the U.S. presidential election.
The U.S., South Korea and Japan also characterized the weapon as an intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM, which can have a range of at least 3,500 miles and is designed mainly to deliver nuclear weapons. It is the first ICBM launch since December for North Korea, a reclusive nuclear-armed state that has been ratcheting up its rhetoric against the U.S. and its allies South Korea and Japan.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered the missile test and was at the launch site, according to a Defense Ministry statement that was carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency. Kim characterized it as an “appropriate military action” in the face of what he said was intentional escalation of regional tensions by North Korea’s rivals.
“I affirm that the DPRK will never change its line of bolstering up its nuclear forces,” Kim said, using the abbreviation for North Korea’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
It was a surprisingly fast confirmation from North Korea, which usually provides details of its weapons tests the day after.
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