N. Korea may fire off IRBM around time of the U.S. presidential

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SEOUL, Nov. 6 (Yonhap) -- North Korea may launch a intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) around the time U.S. citizens go to the polls to pick their new president, a local military source said Sunday.

According to the official source, the military is carefully checking developments taking place in the reclusive country and monitoring the movement of the Musudan missiles that are mounted on mobile launchers.

The Musudan or BM-35 missile is a IRBM with a reported range of some 3,500 kilometers, which is enough to allow it to target the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam. The island is home to many strategic assets that can support South Korean and U.S. forces in the event of a conflict breaking out on the Korean Peninsula.

"Speculation of a launch taking place in the near future comes as North Korean experts have said Pyongyang will likely want to send a strong message to the next president," another military official, who declined to be identified, said. He added the North recently has carried out many of its provocations to coincide with key foreign events.

Both the South Korean military and the U.S. forces stationed on the Korean Peninsula said they are utilizing all available resources to keep close tabs on movement of missiles.

The military said it had detected a Musudan missile near Kusong in North Pyongan Province. The region is where the North fired off a Musudan on Oct. 20.

The North is known to have first fielded the IRBM in 2007, but it only test fired it for the first time on April 15 of this year. Since then, it has fired eight missiles with only one, which was launched on June 22, flying any distance. That missile flew about 400 km after reaching an altitude of 1,400 km.

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/northkorea/2016/11/06/0401000000AEN20161106002600315.html