SEOUL -- Following North Korea's launch Saturday of a long-range projectile, likely an intercontinental ballistic missile, the Kim Jong Un regime is expected to accelerate its military provocations under the pretext of countering the upcoming joint U.S.-South Korean military exercises.
Saturday's launch represented the first firing of a missile by Pyongyang since a short-range one on Jan. 1. North Korea last fired an ICBM three months ago.
According to Japan's Defense Ministry, the missile was launched Saturday at a nearly vertical lofted trajectory, flew for about 66 minutes, and reached an altitude of about 5,700 kilometers.
