FLAGRANT MENACE: North Korea’s weekend missile test was touted as a roaring success by Pyongyang, which it said demonstrates the capability to carry a “large-size heavy nuclear warhead” and hit targets in the United States. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un personally observed the launch, according to state-run Korean Central News Agency, which identified the missile as a Hwasong-12, and said it reached an altitude of 1,312 miles and traveled 489 miles before landing in the Sea of Japan.

A White House statement called North Korea “a flagrant menace for far too long,” and said the latest test was “a call for all nations to implement far stronger sanctions.” It also added “the president cannot imagine that Russia is pleased,” noting that the missile fell in the sea closer to Russia than Japan.