N. Korea says it fired Hwasong-15 ICBM at lofted angle

SEOUL, Feb. 19 (Yonhap) -- North Korea said Sunday it has fired a Hwasong-15 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at a lofted angle in a "sudden launching" drill aimed at ensuring the country's powerful nuclear deterrent.

"The drill was suddenly organized without previous notice under an emergency firepower combat standby order given at dawn of February 18," the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in an English-language report

The missile was launched at the international airport in Pyongyang in the afternoon, with a unit of the Missile General Bureau mobilized, it added.

It flew 989 kilometers for 4,015 seconds at an apogee of 5,768.5 km and landed in the international waters of the East Sea, according to the KCNA.

It cited "military threats" of the United States and South Korea, which are "getting serious to the extent that can not be overlooked."

The Central Military Commission of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea ordered all military units in charge of missile operations to thoroughly maintain a combat readiness posture, the KCNA said.

sooyeon@yna.co.kr
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