US Northern Command officials have confirmed that North Korea launched a total of seven missiles, including the Taepo Dong 2 long-range ballistic missile that exploded in less than a minute after launching at approximately 4 p.m. EDT on July 4. The other missiles were short to medium range; all the missiles went into the Sea of Japan. US and other nations view the launch of the Taepo Dong 2, which could reach American soil, as a provocative act that “violates a standing moratorium n missile tests to which the North had previously committed,” according to a Whitehouse statement. In a press briefing held before word came about the seventh missile, White House spokesman Tony Snow acknowledged that South Korea, Japan, and even China had asked North Korea not to conduct a launch. News reports had speculated for months that Pyongyang was on the verge of launching its new long-range missile, prompting at least one former US defense secretary to call on President Bush to pre-emptively strike North Korea’s long-range missile apparatus.
Expanded production of the B-21 bomber can be accomplished at Northrop Grumman's existing Palmdale, Calif., facilities, the Air Force said. It also said test aircraft will be so simular to the production version that early examples could be used in combat if called for.