The self-proclaimed nuclear power North Korea has reported that it has made further progress in the development of missiles with hypersonic warheads.
The missile authority on Tuesday successfully tested "a new-type intermediate-range solid-fueled ballistic missile loaded with newly-developed hypersonic gliding warhead," North Korean state media said on Wednesday.
The test of the Hwasong-16 was led by North Korean ruler Kim Jong Un, KCNA said, adding that the missile travelled 1,000 kilometres before falling into the water in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, as scheduled.
Both South Korea and Japan registered the test. South Korea's military spoke of a suspected intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM). It said that the missile travelled 600 kilometres before falling into the water.
South Korea condemned the test as a clear violation of UN resolutions that prohibit North Korea from testing ballistic missiles of any range. Such missiles can be equipped with a nuclear warhead.
According to KCNA, the test was "aimed at confirming the designed technical specifications of the new-type intermediate-range hypersonic missile as a whole and verifying the reliability of this weapon system."
The communist leadership in Pyongyang has been pushing ahead with the development of nuclear-capable missiles for years. According to Pyongyang, it has also tested hypersonic missiles on several occasions.
Such weapons are particularly difficult to intercept as they reach more than five times the speed of sound and are manoeuvrable.
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have again risen in recent months.