North Korea says it fired new 'hypersonic missile'

North Korea has claimed that it successfully tested a new hypersonic missile called Hwasong-8 on Tuesday.

State media said the new missile was one of "five most important" new weapons systems laid out in its five-year military development plan.

They called the new missile a "strategic weapon", which usually means it has nuclear capabilities.

Tuesday's launch is another indication of Pyongyang's growing weapons technology amid strict sanctions.

"The development of this weapons system...

The latest launch also marked the country's third missile test this month. It has already revealed a new type of cruise missile, as a well as a new train-launched ballistic missile system.

Hypersonic missiles are much faster and more agile than normal ones, making them much harder for missile defence systems to intercept, according to news agency AFP.

KCNA stated that the test launch confirmed the "navigational control and stability of the missile".

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had at an earlier meeting in January declared that scientists had "finished research" into developing hypersonic gliding warheads.

Tuesday's test was the first for this new system.

North Korea's recent tests - this was the third one this month alone - indicate that it is ramping up its weapons program.

The US has been calling for North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons, and Pyongyang's relationship with President Joe Biden's administration has so far been fraught with tension.

Japan and North Korea also have enduring tensions rooted in Japan's 35-year colonisation of Korea, Pyongyang's pursuit of nuclear and missile programmes, and the North's past abduction of Japanese citizens.

Despite this, Pyongyang seems determined to prove it will continue to develop new weapons systems, saying they are needed for its own self-defence.

Last month the UN atomic agency said North Korea appeared to have restarted a reactor which could produce plutonium for nuclear weapons, calling it a "deeply troubling" development.