N. Korean Mobile Ballistic Missile Called Top Threat by U.S.
- KN-08 could reach much of the U.S., a Pentagon report finds
- Test flights would be needed or missile wouldn't be reliable
Large missiles, believed to be KN-08 intercontinental ballistic missiles, are paraded in Pyongyang, North Korea during the 70th anniversary celebrations of its ruling party's creation, on Oct. 10, 2015.
Photographer: Wong Maye-E/AP PhotoNorth Korea continues to develop a mobile intercontinental ballistic missile that “would likely be capable of reaching much of the continental United States,” the Pentagon said in a new on the secretive regime’s military capabilities.
The KN-08 missile would have an estimated range of more than 3,400 miles (5,500 kilometers), and North Korea already has six “road-mobile” launchers for it, according to the annual report delivered to congressional committees Friday and obtained by Bloomberg News. A mobile missile can be harder to track than a silo-based weapon, although the threat from the KN-08 depends on whether it’s “successfully designed and developed,” the Defense Department cautioned.