North Korea conducts tests of engine for new hypersonic missile - Yonhap
North Korea is testing an engine for a new hypersonic missile (photo: Getty Images)
North Korea conducted ground tests of a solid-fuel engine for a new type of medium-range hypersonic missile, according to Yonhap.
Hypersonic missiles are part of the modern weapons list that Kim Jong Un promised to develop at the party congress in 2021, along with atomic submarines, spy satellites, and solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles.
According to Yonhap, North Korea has been able to set a schedule for completing the development of hypersonic missiles thanks to the success of recent ground tests of engines for the new missiles.
As part of its efforts to improve its armaments system, North Korea conducted ground tests in November last year of what it recently called newly developed solid-fuel engines for a new type of medium-range ballistic missile.
According to analysts in South Korea, on January 14, North Korea tested a solid-fuel missile with a hypersonic warhead as part of its first ballistic launch of the year.
What preceded this
Earlier this year, the White House announced that North Korea had sent its ballistic missiles to Russia.
The department clarified at the time that the occupiers had already used such missiles several times to strike Ukraine.
On February 16, Ukrainian Prosecutor General Andriy Kostin stated that Russian forces had used at least 24 ballistic missiles of North Korean origin during strikes on Ukraine. The US State Department emphasized that North Korea likely wants to obtain ballistic missile technology from Russia in exchange for transferring its weaponry.
