The launch happened hours after South Korean and U.S. troops kicked off their large annual combined drills, which the North views as an invasion rehearsal.
In a first from Guam, the Missile Defense Agency intercepted a medium-range ballistic missile target off the coast using a Standard Missile-3 Block IIA.
The launch was likely meant to meant grab American attention days before the U.S. election and respond to condemnation over the North’s role in Ukraine.