North Korea tests long-range missile
By Richard Spencer in Beijing
Last Updated: 1:56am BST 17/05/2007
North Korea has used a launch-pad in Iran to test-fire a new long-range missile capable of hitting American bases in the Pacific, according to reports from Japan and South Korea.
North Korea tests long-range missile
The missile, known as a Musudan-type, was shown to the public at a vast military parade in the North Korean capital Pyongyang, according to the reports.
South Korean and American intelligence reports suggest it was then tested not from North Korean soil but from Iran, with which North Korea is known to have close military co-operation.
The missile, which could target the US military on the Pacific island of Guam, was previously unrecorded.
North Korea has a known capacity in short and medium-range missiles, including the Taeopodong-1 which it fired over Japan in 1998 to the alarm of Tokyo and its allies in Washington.
North Korea tests long-range missile
Author