The launch came after the U.S. and South Korean militaries said North Korea was preparing a flight of its biggest-yet intercontinental ballistic missile.
fired a suspected long-range missile toward the sea Thursday in what would be its first such test since 2017, according to its neighbors' militaries, raising the ante in a pressure campaign aimed at forcing the United States and other rivals to accept it as a nuclear power and remove crippling sanctions., came after the U.S. and South Korean militaries said the country was preparing a flight of its biggest-yet intercontinental ballistic missile .
South Korean President Moon Jae-in called an emergency National Security Council meeting where he criticized North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for breaking a self-imposed moratorium on ICBM tests and posing a"serious threat" to the region and the broader international community. Moon instructed officials to pursue"all possible response measures" based on its alliance with the United States and cooperation with other international partners, his office said.
"Despite economic challenges and technical setbacks, the Kim regime is determined to advance its missile capabilities," said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor of international studies at Seoul's Ewha Womans University.
It also conducted two medium-range tests in recent weeks from Sunan, home to the country's main airport, that the U.S. and South Korean militaries assessed to have involved components of the North's largest ICBM. The allies had said the missile, which the North calls Hwasong-17, could be tested at full range soon.
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