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North Korea tests missile, raises new fears in Pacific

(CNN)North Korea carried out a provocative new ballistic missile test early Sunday, sending a projectile to a higher altitude and closer to Russia than any of its recent tests, according to officials.

A missile launched near the city of Kong, in western North Korea, flew across the country and into the Sea of Japan/East Sea, hitting the water about 60 miles from Vladivostok in eastern Russia, according to US officials.

Japan's Defense Ministry said the missile reached an altitude of 2,000 kilometers (1,240 miles) and flew for 30 minutes.

The projectile launch comes two weeks after a ballistic missile test that South Korean and US officials said failed.

That missile, launched April 29, blew up over land in North Korean territory, according to a spokesman for the US Pacific Command.

Before Sunday, North Korea had attempted at least nine missile launches on six occasions since US President Donald Trump was inaugurated in January.

Though tensions between the United States and North Korea have been higher than usual over the past few months, a senior North Korean diplomat told South Korea's Yonhap news agency on Saturday that Pyongyang is open to talks with Washington "under the right conditions."

Earlier this month, Trump said he would be willing to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong Un "under the right circumstances."

No sitting US president has ever met with the leader of North Korea while in power, and the idea is extremely controversial.

"North Korea has been a flagrant menace for far too long. South Korea and Japan have been watching this situation closely with us," Spicer's statement said.

Kim's regime has sought to advance its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The Trump administration has made a show of force in the region to deter those programs' development.

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http://edition.cnn.com/2017/05/14/asia/north-korea-missile-test-russia-japan/index.html