TOKYO, March 17. /TASS/. North Korea successfully tested its Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) on Thursday as a response to US-South Korean military exercise in the region, the Voice of Korea radio station reported on Friday.
"A most unstable situation is being created on the Korean Peninsula due to provocative and aggressive large-scale military exercises, conducted by the United States and their South Korean puppets, and aimed against North Korea," the report said. ‘Amid those serious circumstances, a decision has been made <…> to hold a test launch of a Hwasong-17 ICBM on March 16."
The missile was fired from a site in Pyongyang. It covered the distance of some 1,000 meters, reaching the maximum altitude of 6,045 kilometers. It took the missile around 67 minutes to strike a designated target in the Sea of Japan.
"The test launch had no negative effect on security of neighboring countries. It confirmed full combat readiness of North Korea’s strategic armed forces," the state radio said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the exercise. He was accompanied by his daughter.
The March 16 launch was North Korea’s eighth missile test since the start of the year. It took place in the run-up to South Korean president’s first visit to Japan in 12 years.