Confirming South Korea's words, Pyongyang announced that it had fired, Thursday, April 13, a "new type" of solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). Overseeing the test, leader Kim Jong-un welcomed what he described as a major milestone in the country's weapons program.

According to the official KCNA news agency, the missile tested Thursday morning, an "Hwasong-18", will be a "key means of the strategic military force" of the North.

The development of the new weapon "will thoroughly revamp our strategic deterrence and enhance the effectiveness of our nuclear counterattack," Kim said, according to KCNA. "We will strike fatally and respond aggressively until the enemy abandons his sterile strategy and foolish behavior."

All intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) launched so far by North Korea have been liquid fuel. Solid-fuel missiles, which Pyongyang has long sought to develop, are more stable and quicker to prepare, making them more difficult for the enemy to detect and destroy.

Weapons tests expected for "Day of the Sun"

"The reason North Korea is obsessed with solid-fuel missiles is that they will significantly reduce preparation time before launch," Go Myong-hyun, a researcher at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies, told AFP. "This is important because the longer it takes to get the missile out of a silo or tunnel, the higher the risk of destruction before launch."

The announcement comes on the eve of one of North Korea's most important political anniversaries, "Day of the Sun," on April 15.

This date is the anniversary of the birth of North Korea's founding leader, Kim Il-sung, grandfather of current leader Kim Jong-un. It usually gives rise to major weapons tests or military parades.

Tension between Pyongyang, Seoul and Washington is currently at an all-time high. North Korea has stepped up its weapons tests in recent months and declared its status as a nuclear power "irreversible", definitively closing the door to any negotiations on its disarmament.

With AFP and Reuters

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