By Sangmi Cha

SEOUL (Reuters) – The projectile North Korea fired off its east coast on Tuesday was a newly developed hypersonic missile, state news media KCNA reported on Wednesday, the latest in a series of new weapons tested by the reclusive state.

According to South Korea, North Korea launched the missile at the ocean off its east coast. Pyongyang demanded that the United States and South Korea abandon their double standards on weapon programs in order to start diplomatic talks.

According to KCNA’s statement, North Korea has increased its defense capabilities by developing the weapon system. They also called the hypersonic weapon a strategic weapon.

Hypersonic missiles fly at lower altitudes than ballistic missiles, which fly to outer space and return on steep trajectories. They can fly toward targets at low altitudes, with speeds of up to six hundred kilometers per hour (or 3,853 miles an hour), unlike those that travel into space.

This test may indicate that North Korea is now participating in an ever-increasing race to develop the weapon, which currently includes the United States of America, Russia, and China.

North Korea continues to develop its weapons systems despite a standstill in talks that aim at dismantling their nuclear and missile arsenals, in exchange for U.S. Sanction Relief.

According to the report, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un didn’t inspect the launch.

According to the report, “In this first test-launch the national defence scientists confirmed that the missile’s navigational control was maintained.”

The missile Hwasong-8 was able to achieve its technical goals, including the “guiding maneuverability” and “gliding flight characteristics (detachable hypersonic-gliding warhead) of the missile.

NEXT GENERATION OF ARMS

Hypersonic weapons are considered the next generation of arms that aim to rob adversaries of reaction time and traditional defeat mechanisms.

Monday’s test by the United States of America of an air-breathing, hypersonic weapon was the first such successful test since 2013.

Russia’s Tsirkon(Zircon), hypersonic missile cruiser, was successfully tested in July. This weapon, which President Vladimir Putin has referred to as part of a new breed of missile systems, is now being used by the United States.

According to South Korean military intelligence, Chang Young-keun (a missile expert at Korea Aerospace University), the North’s hypersonic gliding car test was most likely a failure. The flight reached Mach 2.5.

Chang stated that the North’s HGV technology was not comparable with those of China, Russia, or the U.S. and is primarily designed for short-range targets like South Korea or Japan.

North Korea indicated last week it is open to another summit with South, provided mutual respect between neighbours can still be achieved. It was responding to South Korean President Moon Jaein’s demand for a formal declaration of the end to the Korean War 1950-1953.

Since 2018, the denuclearization negotiations between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and former U.S. president Donald Trump have been deadlocked.

On Sept 15, the ballistic missile tests by both Koreas were part of an arms race that has seen both countries develop increasingly advanced weapons and impede efforts to resolve tensions.