State news agency KCNA wrote that the missile has the name Hwasong-18, and will strengthen the country’s ability to use nuclear weapons for counterattack.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un witnessed the test launch.

By his side were his wife, sister and daughter, photos released by KCNA show. The daughter has also appeared at a number of other weapons tests in the past year, and there is speculation that she may one day become her father’s successor.

– Extreme anxiety and fear

Kim warned that the missiles would continue to instill “extreme anxiety and fear in them by counterattacking fatally and offensively until they abandon senseless thoughts and reckless actions.”

The test proved the “effectiveness of the new intercontinental missile”, KCNA wrote, adding that it would dramatically improve the country’s strategic deterrence capability and readiness for counterattack.

North Korea has criticized recent military drills by South Korea and the United States that it says have ratcheted up tensions, and has stepped up weapons testing in recent months.

Gaining progress

South Korea said on Thursday it believed it was such a missile. In a statement, the Ministry of Defense described the launch as an “intermediate phase test”.

In addition, it said North Korea needed more time and effort to finalize the system, and that neighboring countries’ technology was not well-developed so as to protect the intercontinental missile’s warhead from the harsh conditions of re-entry into the region. atmosphere.

South Korea’s defense minister told the country’s top elected officials in March that North Korea may not yet have the technology to place a nuclear warhead on a newer short-range missile, but he acknowledged Pyongyang was making significant progress.

Harder to stop

Compared to liquid fuel rockets, solid fuel rockets are easier to store and transport, more stable and quicker to prepare for launch. As such, they are also more difficult to detect and destroy before reaching their target.

At a military parade in Pyongyang in February, North Korea displayed a record number of rockets, among which analysts said at the time were new rockets powered by solid fuel.

Thursday’s launch caused an uproar on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, where residents were told to seek shelter as the missile is believed to have landed near or on the island. However, it turns out that there is no danger.

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