South Korea on Tuesday announced its first official assessment that North Korea's long-range missiles may reach the US mainland.
The Defense Ministry said in its biennial Defense White Paper that North Korea is estimated to have a "capability to threaten the US mainland" after five rounds of test-firing long-range missiles.
The assessment was based on the DPRK's successful launch of a Unha-3 rocket, which is believed to have a range of about 8,000 km, into orbit in December 2012. The previous test-firing failed in April that year.
The DPRK's Taepodong-2 long-range missile has a range of about 10,000 km, according to the white paper.
The paper said North Korea's capability to miniaturize "nuclear weapons" reached a "significant" level because eight years have passed since its first nuclear test. Pyongyang conducted nuclear tests in 2006, 2009 and 2013.
It marked the first time that South Korea's military uses the word "nuclear weapons" in its white paper.
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