The Japan Times - North Korea's Kim says new missile will deter 'rivals'

The test came two weeks before the inauguration of US president-elect Donald Trump, who has previously tried to woo North Korea, and coincided with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken's visit to the South.

"The hypersonic missile system will reliably contain any rivals in the Pacific region that can affect the security of our state," Kim, who oversaw the launch, said in comments carried by KCNA on Tuesday.

The test came as Blinken visited strategic ally South Korea, a fierce rival of the North, with whom it technically remains at war. The top US envoy, now in Tokyo, was expected to address issues surrounding Pyongyang in talks with Japan later Tuesday.

It was North Korea's first since November, when it test-fired what it said was its most advanced and powerful solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

In a statement, Kim said the missile flew for 1,500 kilometres (930 miles) -- beyond the 1,100-kilometre (680-mile) figure given by South Korea's military -- and travelled at 12 times the speed of sound before landing in the ocean.

"This is clearly a plan and effort for self-defence, not an offensive plan and action," Kim said.

However, he added that missile's performance could "not be ignored worldwide," saying it was able to "deal a serious military strike to a rival while effectively breaking any dense defensive barrier."

"The development of the defence capabilities of the DPRK aiming to be a military power will be further accelerated," Kim said, using the acronym for the North's official name.

- Kim's daughter watches -

Images released by KCNA showed Kim observing the launch with his teenage daughter Ju Ae at an undisclosed location.

The location of the test site was also undisclosed, but images showed the missile launching from a remote piece of land surrounded by water on either side and trees stripped because of the winter cold.

Blinken and South Korean counterpart Cho Tae-yul condemned the launch at a joint news conference, where the outgoing US top diplomat said it showed the importance of deepening a three-way alliance with Japan.

The US diplomat also warned of growing cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow, saying that they were working ever more closely on advanced space technology.

Blinken also voiced renewed concern that Russia, a veto-wielding UN Security Council member, would formally accept North Korea as a nuclear state in a major blow to global consensus that Pyongyang must end its programme.

US and South Korean intelligence believe that North Korea late last year sent thousands of troops to fight against Ukraine and has already suffered hundreds of casualties.

The nuclear envoys of South Korea, the US and Japan also held a phone call Monday to condemn the launch, the news agency Yonhap said.

T.Ueda--JT