The Democratic People's Republic of Korea on Thursday fired what was believed to be a Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missile, but it appeared to have failed, South Korea's defense¹ ministry² said.

 

韩国国防部表示，朝鲜周四发射一枚舞水端中程弹道导弹，但结果似乎发射失败。

 

A Defense Ministry official said on the phone that North Korea launched a projectile³, estimated to have been a Musudan missile, at about 6:40 a.m. local time from the Wonsan area in northeastern DPRK.

 

The official said the launch appeared to have failed as the projectile was believed to have crashed several seconds after liftoff.

 

The projectile flew up just hundreds of meters, detected by U.S. reconnaissance satellite but not seen in South Korean military's radar⁴, according to Yonhap news agency report.

 

It was estimated to have crashed in waters off the east coast as it disappeared several seconds after take-off.

 

If confirmed, it would mark North Korea's second test-firing of a Musudan missile after the launch on April 15. South Korea's military saw the April 15 launch as failure as the missile exploded in mid-air several seconds after liftoff.

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