WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The United States has detected an unsuccessful missile launch by North Korea on Wednesday evening, the US Strategic Command announced in a press release.
"US Strategic Command (USSTRATCOM) systems detected what we assess was a failed North Korean missile launch at 5:00 p.m. CDT, October 19, 2016, near the northwestern city of Kusong," the release stated on Wednesday. "The missile is presumed to be a Musudan intermediate-range ballistic missile."
The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) concluded that the launch did not pose a threat to North America, the release added.
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula intensified in September after North Korea claimed to have successfully exploded a nuclear warhead, having previously detonated a hydrogen bomb in January.
The September 9 test is believed to be the fifth and largest blast since Pyongyang began pursuing nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The UN Security Council condemned the test as a repeated violation of the world body’s resolutions.
