SKorea announces US deal allowing it to have missiles capable of hitting all of NKorea

SEOUL, South Korea – South Korea says the U.S. has agreed to allow it to develop longer-range missiles that could strike all of North Korea.

Under a 2001 accord with Washington, Seoul has been barred from developing and deploying ballistic missiles with a range of more than 300 kilometers (186 miles) due to concerns of a regional arms race.

As a result, some North Korean military facilities have been out of South Korea's missile range.

South Korea's presidential Blue House said Sunday that South Korea and the U.S. have revised the accord to allow Seoul to have missiles with a range of up to 800 kilometers (500 miles) to better cope with North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.

North Korea has missiles that can hit South Korea, Japan and the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam.