BEIJING, May 22 (UPI) -- North Korea may be preparing a test launch of a long-range missile that could reach Hawaii, Alaska or the western coast of the United States.
Kyodo News Service cited a western source in Beijing who said in the past year the engine for the Taepodong-2 has been tested. A source in Japan said U.S. forces had observed increased movements of trailers around a North Korean test site.
In 1998, Pyongyang test-fired the Taepodong-1, which has a range of about 1,500 miles. The rocket landed in the Pacific Ocean on the far side of Japan.
The Taepodong-2 has never been tested. In 1999, North Korea agreed to a testing moratorium as part of a settlement with the United States. President Kim Jong Il agreed to extend the moratorium in 2002 after talks with Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi.
