North Korea's surprise intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test on July 4 has sparked global headlines and outrage from key international players.

For the United States, the ICBM appears at the very least to pose a new type of military threat, allowing the DPRK, for the first time, to target the U.S. mainland with nuclear missiles. But because the test happened in face of President Donald J. Trump's January tweet which insisted that an ICBM launch "won't happen," the stakes have undeniably just been raised.