North Korea's Kim Jong Un says engine test is 'new birth' of rocket industry
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The engine would help North Korea achieve world-class satellite launch capability, KCNA said, indicating the test was of a new type of rocket engine for long-range missiles.
North Korea has conducted five nuclear tests and a series of missile launches, in defiance of U.N. sanctions, and is believed by experts and government officials to be working to develop nuclear-warhead missiles that could reach the United States.
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| North Korean leader Kim Jong Un provides field guidance at the construction site of Ryomyong Street in this undated picture provided by KCNA in Pyongyang on March 16, 2017. KCNA |
Kim Jong Un has said North Korea is close to a test-launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile.
KCNA said the test was carried out at the Sohae Satellite Launching Ground, where North Korea has conducted long-range rocket tests.
KCNA cited leader Kim as saying the significance of the test would soon be evident.
"He noted that the success made in the current test marked a great event of historic significance as it declared a new birth of the Juche-based rocket industry," KCNA said. Juche refers to North Korea's homegrown ideology of self-reliance.
"He emphasized that the whole world will soon witness what eventful significance the great victory won today carries," it said.
