North Korea said on Thursday that it had successfully tested its ability to launch multiple warhead missiles, according to the state-run KCNA news agency.
According to KCNA, Pyongyang “conducted the separation and guidance control test of individual mobile warheads successfully” on Wednesday. It also stated that the “separated mobile warheads were guided correctly to the three coordinate targets.”
The statement read, “The test is aimed at securing the MIRV capability,” referring to the technology known as multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles, which enables the firing of several warheads on a single ballistic missile.
The announcement was made the day after the military of South Korea said that the North had tested a missile on Wednesday that seemed to be hypersonic, but it exploded in midair.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul said in a statement that South Korean and US intelligence services were conducting a thorough investigation of the missile, which took off from a location in or near Pyongyang at around 5:30 am (2030 GMT).
After traveling about 250 kilometers (155 miles), the test of what looked to be a hypersonic missile failed, according to the JCS official.
The official stated that the missile appeared to be emitting more smoke than usual, which could indicate problems with combustion. It also suggested that the missile might have been propelled by solid propellants.
The launch was also confirmed by Japan, whose coast guard reported that the missile landed in the East Sea, also referred to as the Sea of Japan.
The test, according to KCNA, “was carried out by use of the first-stage engine of an intermediate-range solid-fuel ballistic missile within a 170-200 km radius.”
“The effectiveness of a decoy separated from the missile was also verified by anti-air radar,” it continued.
The test comes after hundreds more trash-carrying balloons from North Korea were launched southward on Monday and Tuesday. These border barrages have spurred a tit-for-tat propaganda campaign.
The North has reportedly launched more garbage-carrying balloons southward for the third day in a row, according to a statement sent by South Korea’s military late on Wednesday. The public is advised to report any sightings of the balloons and avoid touching them.
Seoul has responded by completely suspending a military agreement aimed at lowering tensions and resuming some propaganda broadcasts over border loudspeakers.
On Wednesday, the South Korean Marine Corps began conducting live-fire drills on islands close to the western border between the two Koreas. These are the first drills conducted since a 2018 military agreement to reduce tensions with the North was halted earlier this month due to propaganda sent by balloons.
South Korea and the US also staged joint air drills Wednesday involving around 30 aircraft, including Washington’s advanced stealth fighter jet, F-22 Raptor. On Tuesday, President Yoon Suk Yeol visited a US aircraft carrier that arrived in South Korea at the weekend for joint military drills aimed at countering North Korean threats. The drills, which include Japan, are set to go ahead later this month. Pyongyang has routinely criticised such exercises as rehearsals for an invasion.