'N.K. Almost Finished Missile Development'
A Japanese media report says North Korea almost completed last summer the development of its Daepodong Two long-range ballistic missile.
Kyodo News Agency on Monday quoted a number of military sources familiar with North Korea as saying Pyongyang is ready for a test-fire and seeks to complete development by 2008.
The report says the Daepodong Two missile has a range of three-thousand-500 to six-thousand kilometers and could hit the U.S. state of Alaska.
The report said the extent of the North's missile development was disclosed for the first time but added a test launch is not imminent.
Kyodo said Pyongyang could extend the missile's range to 15-thousand kilometers to reach the U.S. mainland through improvements, but whether it has done so is unclear.
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