North Korea claimed to have successfully test-fired its new Hwasong-19 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), according to Korean media.
Hwasong-19 reached an altitude of 7,687.5 kilometres (4,776.8 miles) and flew 1,001.2 kilometres in 5,156 seconds, or 85 minutes and 56 seconds. The missile set a record for both altitude and flight time among North Korea’s intercontinental ballistic missile tests.
Estimates show that Hwasong-19 can reach a distance of more than 15,000 kilometres when launched on a standard trajectory. This is enough to target the entire US mainland.
The test was conducted at around 7:10 a.m. Thursday in Pyongyang on an elevated trajectory. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un expressed “great satisfaction” with the missile’s performance. North Korean media emphasised the Hwasong-19 as “the primary core means in defending the DPRK, thoroughly containing the enemies’ acts of aggression and reliably protecting national security.”
Meanwhile, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Iwaya Takeshi discussed the launch in a phone call and issued a joint statement that “strongly condemned” the launch. In a statement issued Thursday, the three countries called the missile test a “flagrant violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions.”
