North Korea Says It Test-Fired New Solid-Fuel Hypersonic Missile

North Korea said on Wednesday it successfully test-fired a new mid- to long-range solid-fuel hypersonic missile, North Korean newspaper Rodong Sinmun said.

North Korea fired a suspected intermediate-range ballistic missile into the sea on Tuesday in a possible test of a new rocket using solid fuel, drawing swift condemnation from South Korea, Japan and the United States.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspected the launch, Rodong Sinmun said, and lauded it as a strategic weapon that demonstrates the “absolute superiority” of North Korea’s defence technology.

North Korea has “fully turned all tactical, operational, and strategic-grade missiles of different ranges into solid-fuel, with warhead control, and capable of nuclearisation”, Kim said, according to Rodong Sinmun.