North Korea tested a short-range cruise missile today — the second such test in less than a month, according to the Associated Press (see GSN, Feb. 26).

The missile is believed to be similar to the anti-ship missile North Korea tested late last month, said South Korean Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Kim Ki-beom (see GSN, Feb. 25).  The missile was fired from Sinsang-ri and flew for 68 miles before falling into Sea of Japan, South Korean officials said.

There had been prior signs that North Korea was planning to conduct the test, AP reported.  For example, the U.S. Defense Department earlier cited a North Korean warning for naval vessels to say out of an area off its eastern coast from Saturday to Tuesday (Christopher Torchia, Associated Press/Yahoo.com, March 10).  Prior to the test, U.S. officials said they anticipated a North Korean test of its KN-01 short-range anti-ship missile, currently under development (CNN.com, March 10).

Today’s missile test could be an attempt by North Korea to further escalate tensions with the United States in the conflict over Pyongyang’s relaunched nuclear program, according to experts (see GSN, March 7).

“This is another show of North Korean brinkmanship,” said Yoon Dong-min, an expert at the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security in Seoul.  “They are trying to raise the stakes in the nuclear standoff and trying to get the upper hand ahead of possible talks with the United States,” Yoon said (Torchia, Associated Press).

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