N.Korea confirms launching of submarine ballistic missile test
North Korea said on Sunday it had conducted a submarine-launched ballistic missile test supervised by leader Kim Jong Un and it was a "great success" that gave the country "one more means for powerful nuclear attack."
North Korea fired one missile from a submarine off its east coast on Saturday, South Korea's military said, amid concerns that the isolated state might conduct a nuclear test or a missile launch ahead of a rare ruling party meeting in May.
The missile flew for about 30 km (18 miles), a South Korean Defence Ministry official said late on Saturday, adding its military was trying to determine whether the launch may have been a failure for unspecified reasons.
State Department spokesman John Kirby said launches using ballistic missile technology were "a clear violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions."
