Korea launched a new missile, reported as a Hwasong-12, that reportedly flew a highly lofted trajectory reaching an altitude of over 2,000 kilometers and traveling more than 700 kilometers in distance before falling into the East Sea. (15) Several senior officials at the Department of Defense have publicly stated their belief that, due to the new pace of North Korean missile testing, it is no longer a matter of if North Korea gets the capability to threaten the contiguous United States with a nuclear intercontinental ballistic missile, but when North Korea will achieve that capability. (16) During the past six years, under the regime of Kim Jong-un, North Korea has conducted approximately 80 ballistic missile and three nuclear tests. (17) During the same span of six years, the Missile Defense Agency, due to funding reductions, budget uncertainty, and a risk-averse testing culture, has only conducted four flight tests of the ground-based midcourse defense element of the ballistic missile defense system. (18) Since 2006 and adjusted for inflation, funding for the Missile Defense Agency’s budget has decreased 23.4 percent, from $11,000,000,000 to $8,400,000,000. (19) Meanwhile, Iran continues to develop ballistic missiles in violation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2231 (2015), has developed medium-range ballistic missiles to target Israel and other allies of the United States, and is working towards an intercontinental ballistic missile capability. (20) In March 2013, in response to a nuclear detonation by North Korea, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel, citing irresponsible and reckless provocations , announced plans to restore the number of deployed ground-based interceptors from 30 to 44 by the end of 2017. (21) The Missile Defense Agency will soon finish the expansion to 44 ground-based interceptors and begin the construction of a new S-band radar, the Long Range Discrimination Radar (LRDR), at Clear Air Force Station, Alaska, starting in 2018. (22) The Missile Defense Agency is currently