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inanna

(3,547 posts)
Thu Apr 28, 2016, 04:05 AM Apr 2016

South Korea: Suspected midrange North Korean missile crashes

Source: Associated Press

Apr. 28, 2016 3:34 AM ET

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — A suspected powerful midrange North Korean missile crashed seconds after liftoff Thursday, South Korea's Defense Ministry said, in what would be the second such embarrassing failure in recent weeks.

South Korea's report of the North's launch failure is particularly humiliating as it comes ahead of a major ruling party meeting next week in Pyongyang, which leader Kim Jong Un is believed to be looking to as a way to put his stamp more forcefully on a government he inherited after his dictator father's death in late 2011.

A Defense Ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity because of office rules, said the launch was likely the second attempt for the inaugural test of a Musudan, a new, powerful midrange missile that could one day be capable of reaching far-off U.S. military bases in Asia and the Pacific.

The projectile Thursday crashed a few seconds after liftoff.

The failed launch comes amid Pyongyang's anger over annual South Korean-U.S. military drills that North Korea calls a rehearsal for an invasion. The North has in recent months fired many missiles and artillery shells into the sea in apparent protests against the drills.


Read more: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2016-04-28-AS--Korean-Tensions/id-e8f4a917fae044d2976b34b36eecb357

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South Korea: Suspected midrange North Korean missile crashes (Original Post) inanna Apr 2016 OP
Submitted without comment: johnfunk Apr 2016 #1
What a bunch of mooks! Elmer S. E. Dump Apr 2016 #2
Of course it crashed! fred v Apr 2016 #3
Maybe they'll blow themselves up. B2G Apr 2016 #4
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