SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea test-fired a suspected long-range ballistic missile that is designed to strike the continental United States, its neighbors said Thursday, days before the U.S. presidential election. This would be the first ICBM launch since December for North Korea, a reclusive nuclear-armed state that has been ratcheting up its rhetoric against the U.S. and its allies South Korea and Japan. Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani later said the missile fell into the sea off North Korea’s east coast around 8:37 a.m. He said the launch time of 86 minutes would be the longest ever for a North Korean missile test, and that it could be a new type of missile. North Korea has said the deployment is a “rumor,” while Russian President Vladimir Putin did not deny the reports when asked about them by NBC News last week.

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Persons: Gen Nakatani, Sean Savett, ”, Vladimir Putin, Lloyd Austin, Kim Yong, Austin, Stella Kim, Arata Yamamoto, Jennifer Jett Organizations: U.S, Korea’s, Chiefs, Staff, Japanese, Korean, National Security, United Nations, Pacific Command, South Korea’s Defense Intelligence Agency, Officials, NBC, Defense, Ukrainian Locations: SEOUL, South Korea, North Korea, United States, Japan, Pyongyang, U.S, Korea, Moscow, Russia’s Far, Ukraine, The U.S, Russia, Washington, Korean, Seoul, Oshu City, Hong Kong