NK confirms intermediate-range missile launch, hints at more tests

North Korea on Tuesday fired the missile from Pyongyang, which crossed over Japan. It traversed more than 2,700 kilometers and reached a maximum altitude of around 550 km, according to South Korea's military.

The provocation came as South Korean and US troops are staging their annual joint military exercises, which will end Thursday.

North Korea has long denounced them as a rehearsal for an invasion of it though the allies said that exercises are defensive in nature.

The move came amid an apparent conciliatory gesture from the United States after exchanges of bellicose rhetoric between US President Donald Trump and the North Korean leadership.

Tensions somewhat subdued after Pyongyang did not carry out its plan to fire four Hwasong-12 missiles into waters near the US territory of Guam. Trump earlier warned of "fire and fury" after the North tested two intercontinental ballistic missiles in July.

Guam, approximately 3,000 km southeast of North Korea, hosts key US naval and air force bases that can be used to dispatch forces to the Korean Peninsula in the event of an emergency situation.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last week welcomed North Korea's restraint from provocations, voicing hope that dialogue with Pyongyang may be possible "sometime in the near future."

But after a one-month hiatus, the North fired three short-range missiles over the weekend. Three days later, it fired the Hwasong-12 in what could be a message that it is not bluffing with its threat to strike near Guam.

Trump warned Tuesday that "all options are on the table" in response to North Korea's missile launch.

North Korea said that it will "continue to watch the US demeanors as already declared and decide its future action."

Experts said that Pyongyang seems to be defiant toward Washington's talk of dialogue, which it views as lacking sincerity without concrete actions.

"The missile test appeared to be aimed at pressuring the US and expressing its will to take the initiative in the current security situation," said Kim Yong-hyun, a professor at Dongguk University.
 

Analysts said that Pyongyang is likely to stage more provocative acts, such as the firing of new ballistic missiles, as it called Tuesday's missile launch a prelude to hitting targets in the Pacific.

Last week, North Korea unveiled photos that indicate that it may be developing a new submarine-launched, solid-fuel missile, called the Pukguksong-3 and a Hwasong-13 ICBM.

"North Korea is expected to stick to missile provocations until the international community takes strong actions enough to effectively deter its behavior," said Yang Wook, a senior researcher of the Korea Defense and Security Forum.

The US is likely to continue to employ pressure and sanctions on the wayward regime and press China, the main ally of North Korea, into using its leverage to rein in the North, experts noted.

President Moon Jae-in, who seeks dialogue with Pyongyang, is expected to focus on sanctions for a while.

The United Nations Security Council on Tuesday unanimously adopted a statement condemning the North's latest firing during its emergency meeting. It slapped fresh sanctions in early August on North Korea over its ICBM tests.

Pyongyang is under a set of UNSC sanctions due to its five nuclear tests and numerous missile launches. (Yonhap)