North Korea tests most powerful missile to date

“A new-type ICBM, Hwasongpho-18, which will fulfill its mission of an important war deterrent as the future core pivotal means of the strategic force of the DPRK, was test-fired,” North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

KCNA said that Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised the first test-fire of the new-type missile on the spot.

“The aim of the test-fire was to confirm the performance of the high-thrust solid-fuel engines for multi-stage missiles and the reliability of the stage-jettisoning technology and various functional control systems and to estimate the military feasibility of the new strategic weapon system,” the agency noted.

“The Hwasongpho-18 weapon system, to be equipped with and operated by the strategic force of the DPRK under the long-term plan for building the state nuclear force, will perform its important mission and duty as the most powerful, pivotal and principal means in defending the DPRK, deterring aggression and defending the security of the state,” the agency added.

On Thursday, South Korea said that North Korea likely tested a new type of ballistic missile, with the launch briefly triggering an evacuation order in parts of Japan. (ILKHA)