SEOUL - North Korea has moved into place a launcher ready for an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), and may decide to set it off around the time of the US presidential election, South Korean lawmakers said, citing military intelligence.

       The North may seek to highlight its strategic weapons development by attempting to launch a long-range missile or conduct its seventh nuclear test around the time of the Nov 5 election, South Korean officials have said.

       On Oct 30, Member of Parliament Lee Seong-kweun said a mobile launcher has been deployed at a location for a possible test of the ICBM and its atmospheric re-entry of a missile warhead, potentially around the time of the Nov 5 election.

       Mr Lee was briefing reporters after a closed-door parliamentary hearing with Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) officials.

       “Preparations of a transporter-erector launcher are complete and it’s deployed at a specific location, and an ICBM launch for technological verification of warhead re-entry could take place, with a timing targeting the US presidential election – either before or after – in November,” he said.

       Another MP, Ms Park Sun-won, said the DIA did not believe a missile had yet been loaded on the launcher, although it might also have been transported to the site.

       North Korea has performed a series of ICBM test launches at a sharply steep trajectory to let the projectiles drop within much shorter distances relative to the designed range, partly for safety and to avoid the political fallout of sending a missile far into the Pacific.

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       But a launch with a flatter, standard trajectory is considered essential for ICBM development to ensure the warhead is capable of making a re-entry into the atmosphere while maintaining control to hit an intended target. REUTERS