North Korea has conducted a test of a new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), the Hwasong-18, in order to “radically promote” the country’s nuclear counterattack capabilities.
According to state media, North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un directed the test, warning that enemies would “experience a clearer security crisis, and constantly strike extreme uneasiness and horror into them by taking fatal and offensive counter-actions until they abandon their senseless thinking and reckless acts.”
The latest launch occurred just days after Kim urged for increasing war deterrent in a “more practical and offensive” manner to fight what North Korea called US aggression.
North Korean officials said the missile, fired from near Pyongyang, flew about 1,000 km (620 miles) before landing in waters east of North Korea adding that the test posed no threats to its neighbouring countries.
A South Korean military official said the missile’s maximum altitude was lower than 6,000 km, the apogee of some of last year’s record-breaking tests.
North Korea has criticised recent U.S.-South Korean joint military exercises as escalating tensions, and has stepped up weapons tests in the past months.
South Korea’s defence ministry said North Korea was still developing the weapon, and that it needed more time and effort to master the technology.
Developing a solid-fuel ICBM has long been regarded as a critical priority for North Korea, as it would allow the North to deploy missiles more quickly during a fight.
The majority of the country’s largest ballistic missiles employ liquid fuel, which necessitates propellant loading at the launch site – a time-consuming and dangerous process.
