Pyongyang claims successful launch of intercontinental ballistic missile days ahead of meeting between Chinese and US leaders
North Korea on Tuesday said it had successfully tested its first intercontinental ballistic missile, catching military experts off-guard and ratcheting up pressure on its Asian neighbours to take a harder line against the hermit nation.
The launch comes at a sensitive time in global affairs. Chinese President Xi Jinping is due to meet US counterpart Donald Trump at a G20 summit in Germany in the coming days, and South Korean leader Moon Jae-in wrapped up a visit to the White House last week.
The missile was launched at 9.40am and flew about 933km, reaching an altitude of 2,802km, before falling into the sea inside Japan’s exclusive economic zone after a 39 minute flight, the North’s official media reported.
The launch was tracked by the US and Japan, which said the missile reached an altitude that “greatly exceeded” 2,500km.
Hype vs reality: doubts North Korea can miniaturise nuclear weapon into missile nose cone
It appeared to be the most successful missile test yet by North Korea, flying higher than the 560km recorded by Seoul in the previous test carried out in May.
Pyongyang said the success of the ICBM – which it calls the Hwasong-14 – marked the “final step” in creating a “confident and powerful nuclear state that can strike anywhere on Earth”.
Andrei Chang, founder of military affairs magazine Kanwa Asian Defence, said he was surprised by Pyongyang’s progress in its missile programme. “Now there is only one question remaining – whether the missile will be equipped with a nuclear warhead one day. North Korea’s missile experts are very smart, and it’s possible based on the existing progress and capability, ” Chang said.
