North Korea on Friday announced that it had tested a solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) for the first time. Experts say such missiles can be deployed faster than their liquid-fueled counterparts—which make up the majority of Pyongyang’s arsenal—because they don’t need to be loaded with propellant at their launch site. North Korean state media said Kim Jong Un claimed the test he oversaw on Thursday would ensure enemies “experience a clearer security crisis, and constantly strike extreme uneasiness and horror into them by taking fatal and offensive counter-actions until they abandon their senseless thinking and reckless acts.” The KCNA state news agency added that the new missile will “radically promote” the regime’s nuclear forces.
🇰🇵 🚀 Hwasong-18 will defend North Korea, prevent invasions and protect the nation's security - the state news agency KCNA announced, noting that Kim Jong Un expressed "great satisfaction" over the success of the test launch. pic.twitter.com/8wo5k9d1mh