North Korea leader says ICBM test 'appropriate military action' against enemies

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA/TOKYO — 

North Korea said it tested an intercontinental ballistic rocket connected Thursday, upgrading what it called the "world's astir almighty strategical weapon," arsenic Seoul warned Pyongyang could get rocket exertion from Russia for helping with the warfare successful Ukraine.

North Korean person Kim Jong Un said the trial was a informing to enemies that person been threatening the country's security, KCNA authorities quality bureau said.

"The test-fire is an due subject enactment that afloat meets the intent of informing the rivals, who person intentionally escalated the determination concern and posed a menace to the information of our Republic recently, of our counteraction will," Kim was quoted arsenic saying by KCNA.

The muscle-flexing comes amid planetary outcry and rising alarm implicit what the U.S. and others accidental is North Korea's deployment of 11,000 troops to Russia -- 3,000 of them adjacent to the occidental frontlines with Ukraine.

The motorboat drew swift condemnation from South Korea, Japan and the United States.

A time earlier, Seoul cited subject quality suggesting the North whitethorn test-launch an ICBM oregon behaviour a seventh atomic trial astir the U.S. statesmanlike predetermination connected Tuesday, seeking to gully attraction to its increasing subject prowess.

Shin Seung-ki, caput of probe connected North Korea's subject astatine the state-run Korea Institute for Defense Analyses, said the motorboat was apt to trial improved booster show of an existing ICBM -- perchance with Russia's help.

"North Korea volition privation to support getting assistance similar this, due to the fact that it saves times and costs portion improving show and upgrading the stableness of weapons system," helium said.

It could besides beryllium Pyongyang's effect to unit implicit its engagement with Russia, Shin said.

"The volition whitethorn beryllium to amusement that it volition not bow to pressure, that it volition respond to spot with strength, and besides to question immoderate power connected the U.S. statesmanlike election."

New records

The motorboat aboriginal connected Thursday was the longest ballistic rocket trial by the North with a flight-time of 87 minutes, according to South Korea.

KCNA said the trial acceptable caller records of its rocket capabilities.

The rocket took disconnected connected a sharply lofted trajectory from an country adjacent the North's superior and splashed down astir 200 kilometers westbound of Japan's Okushiri island, disconnected Hokkaido.

It reached an altitude of 7,000 kilometers and flew a region of 1,000 kilometers, the Japanese authorities said.

The alleged lofted trajectory of a projectile flying astatine a sharply raised space is intended to trial its thrust and stableness implicit overmuch shorter distances comparative to the designed range, partially for information and to debar the governmental fallout of sending a rocket acold into the Pacific.

North Korea's past ICBM, dubbed the Hwasong-18, was tested successful December 2023. Fueled by solid-propellant and fired from a roadworthy launcher, it was besides launched astatine a sharply raised space and flew for 73 minutes, translating to a imaginable scope of 15,000 kilometers connected a mean trajectory.

That is simply a region that puts anyplace successful the mainland United States wrong range.

South Korea announced connected Thursday caller export controls connected materials needed by North Korea to nutrient solid-fuel missiles.

Asked astir the rocket launch, Chinese overseas ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said China "has ever believed that bid and stability, and promoting a governmental solution to the peninsula contented are successful accordance with the communal interests of each sides."

Pyongyang's latest trial came conscionable hours aft U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin and his South Korean counterpart Kim Yong-hyun met successful Washington to condemn the North Korean unit deployment successful Russia.

Neither Moscow nor Pyongyang person straight acknowledged the deployment, but Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia connected Wednesday questioned wherefore its allies similar North Korea could not assistance Moscow successful its warfare against Ukraine erstwhile Western countries assertion the close to assistance Kyiv.

South Korea said the deployment straight threatened its information due to the fact that the North would summation invaluable combat acquisition successful a modern warfare and was apt to beryllium rewarded by Moscow with "technology transfers" successful areas specified arsenic tactical atomic weapons, ICBMs, ballistic rocket submarines, and subject reconnaissance satellites.