[Yonhap News Photo]
North Korea test-fired a suspected medium-range Musudan missile Tuesday from a base on its east coast, but the launch appeared to have failed, South Korean military authorities said.
The launch was made at 5:20 am near North Korea's eastern port city of Wonsan, the site for a series of Musudan missile tests using mobile launchers last month, the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff said.
North Korea has continued to test Musudan missiles banned by UN resolutions. The first one on April 15 exploded in midair, followed by two more on April 28 that also crashed into a coastal area or exploded in midair.
South Korea has accused North Korea of trying to develop technology related to mobile launch systems for ballistic missiles propelled by solid fuel.
The Musudan with an estimated range of more than 3,000 kilometers (1,860 miles) could reach as far as Guam. It was first revealed to the international community in a military parade in 2010. There has been no indication that the missile system was operational.
In April 2013, US intelligence detected North Korean troops setting up Musudan erector platforms at various locations on multiple occasions, but no launches took place.
North Korea has pushed for the development of an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a miniaturized nuclear warhead. Mobile long-range systems are of particular concern if North Korea succeeds in miniaturizing an atomic bomb.
Aju News Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
