North Korea will develop a plan by mid-August to launch four intermediate-range missiles at the US territory of Guam before presenting it to leader Kim Jong Un, who will make a decision on whether to proceed, the North's state media says.
The unusually detailed report on the attack plan on Thursday marked a further escalation in tensions between Pyongyang and Washington after US President Donald Trump warned North Korea earlier this week it would face "fire and fury" if it threatened the US.
North Korea's official news agency KCNA described Trump's threat as a "load of nonsense".
"Sound dialogue is not possible with such a guy bereft of reason and only absolute force can work on him," it said of Trump, adding it would keep monitoring the speech and behaviour of the US.
The North Korean army was developing a plan "in order to interdict the enemy forces on major military bases on Guam and to signal a crucial warning to the United States", the KCNA report said.
Guam is home to about 163,000 people and a US military base that includes a submarine squadron, an air base and a coast guard group.
"The Hwasong-12 rockets to be launched by the KPA (Korean People's Army) will cross the sky above Shimane, Hiroshima and Koichi Prefectures of Japan," the report said, citing General Kim Rak Gyom, commander of the Strategic Force of the KPA.
"They will fly 3356.7km for 1065 seconds and hit the waters 30-40km away from Guam."
