After claiming to have test-fired its biggest-ever intercontinental ballistic missile, North Korea released photographs as proof. In the pictures, North Korea's dictatorial leader Kim Jong Un was seen inspecting the operation. He was dressed in a black leather jacket and sunglasses.
The test reportedly took place at the Pyongyang International Airport. It was North Korea's first full ICBM test since 2017. The missile is claimed to have reached an altitude of 6,200 km and travelled a distance of 1,080 km, surpassing the country's last ICBM test four years ago. The weapon reportedly fell into the Sea of Japan after a 67-minute flight.
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Pyongyang called the 'Hwasong-17' missile a "new type of ICBM". Kim Jong Un ordered the test due to the "inevitability of the long-standing confrontation with the US imperialists accompanied by the danger of a nuclear war", as per North Korean state media.
In a flurry of military activity, Pyongyang has reportedly conducted nearly a dozen missile tests since the start of the year. The latest escalation by Kim Jong Un coincides with the Russia-Ukraine war which has been going on for a month. The invasion of Ukraine has led to rising tension between nuclear powers Russia, and US-led NATO.
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