[ThunderSleeps]

This - the relative unreliability of NK missile technology - is why Russia and China should be almost as concerned about NK's nuclear threats as the US.

The flight path for launches from centeral NK launch sites to US west coast targets generally goes over or very nearly over Vladivostok. Flight paths to central and eastern US targets go over significant chunks of Chinese and Russian territory. Notably, they spend the first 1200 to 2200 miles or so over them. That means critical/dangerous/tricky staging and max-Q events events happen over Chinese & Russian territory.

Even if, and that's a big if, everything works as intended those spent stages are going to be coming down on Chinese and Russian territory.

[AppyPappy]

“Dear Great Leader, one of our missiles hit one of our cities”
“How awful. How terrible. How did it do?”