(LEAD) White House: Trump briefed on N. Korea missile launch

(ATTN: UPDATES with Pacific Command statement in last 3 paras)

WASHINGTON, May 28 (Yonhap) -- U.S. President Donald Trump has been briefed on North Korea's latest missile launch, a White House official said Sunday.

"The United States government is aware. The president has been briefed," the unidentified National Security Council official said, according to White House pool reports.

South Korea's military said the North fired what appeared to be a Scud-type missile off its east coast and the missile flew about 450 kilometers before landing in the East Sea.

It marked the North's ninth missile test this year and the third in about a week.

The North fired a mid-range missile, known as the Pukguksong-2, on May 21 and conducted a KN-06 surface-to-air guided missile test Saturday.

The U.S. Pacific Command identified the projectile as a short-range ballistic missile.

"The launch of a short-range ballistic missile occurred near Wonsan Airfield. The missile was tracked for six minutes until it landed" in the East Sea, the command said in a statement. "We are working with our interagency partners on a more detailed assessment. We continue to monitor North Korea's actions closely."

The command also said it stands behind its ironclad commitment to the security of South Korea and Japan.

jschang@yna.co.kr
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