Hi Larry,

Check these links out, especially the second link.

This article indicates an official from Alaska's Missile Defense could not confirm or deny the landing of any rocket.

(That's the blanket statement given when data is classified - not exactly a denial ;-)

This article offers more detail in that it states the Japanese minister saying and I quote, "the last piece of a missile warhead fired by North Korea was found in Alaska."

This "last piece" would be the third stage.

This would make this paragraph make sense:

"The August 1998 test of a three-stage Taepodong-1 missile was an unsuccessful effort to launch a satellite, according to U.S. intelligence officials. The first stage splashed down in the Sea of Japan, while the second stage flew over Japan and landed in the Pacific, U.S. officials said. The fate of the satellite stage has not been reported."

If it landed in Alaska, and Clinton classified it, just to cover his own rear and simultaneously give Gore a better chance in 2000,I could easily see such a scenario occur.

As you noted Clinton had been poo-poohing missile defense for 6 years by that date.

The fact that the Japanese minister knows about it would not surprise me either as it seems everyone in the far east had access to the White House's classified documents in those days, either that or he was specially briefed due to its relevance to Japan.

SDAI-Tech1