SEOUL, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) had test-launched an intermediate-range ballistic missile, but it ended in a failure, Seoul's military said on Sunday.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement that the DPRK fired what is believed to be a Musudan missile at about 12:33 p.m. local time on Saturday (0333 GMT) near an airport in the DPRK's northwestern North Pyongan province.
The test-launch, the JCS said, failed as the missile exploded soon after its liftoff.
The failed launch came on the day that the United States and South Korea wrapped up their joint naval exercises that kicked off on Monday in all of the three seas around South Korea.
The U.S. military mobilized its nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan to participate in the week-long drill, which also involved seven U.S. warships and some 40 South Korean battleships as well as fighter jets, maritime patrol airplanes and helicopters.
On June 22, Pyongyang launched a Musudan medium-range missile, flying some 400 km after reaching as high as 1,413.6 km. It was seen as a considerable technological advance and the first success by the DPRK after several failures.
