North Korea says it launched latest Hwasong-18 missile

(Patria) - North Korea tested its latest Hwasong-18 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), state media reported, saying the weapon is the core of its nuclear strike capabilities and a warning to the United States and other adversaries, Reuters reports.

The Hwasong-18 is North Korea's first solid-fuelled ICBM, which can allow for faster missile deployment during wartime. It first flew in April.

"The test is essentially a process aimed at further developing the Republic's strategic nuclear forces and at the same time serves as a powerful practical warning" to adversaries, the state-run KCNA news agency said.

The launch on Wednesday, which was then reported by the militaries of South Korea and Japan, was condemned by the US and leaders in Seoul and Tokyo, among others.

Accusing Washington of escalating tensions by deploying submarines and bombers to the Korean Peninsula and planning a nuclear war with its South Korean allies, KCNA said the military security situation had "reached the phase of post-Cold War nuclear crisis".

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the test and said the country would take increasingly stronger measures to protect itself as long as the US and its allies abandon their hostile policies, the KCNA report said.

The 74-minute flight of the Hwasong-18 was the longest ever for a North Korean missile test, KCNA said, adding that the missile's second and third stages flew on an elevated trajectory to a high altitude for safety.

"The test had no negative impact on the safety of neighbouring countries," it stated.
North Korea said the missile flew 1,001 km to an altitude of 6,648 km.