north korea said it test-fired a new intercontinental ballistic missile Thursday morning, a launch believed to have achieved the longest flight time for a North Korean missile to date.

The new “improved” Hwasong-19 missile was launched just days before Tuesday’s US presidential election and after warnings from South Korea’s intelligence agency that Pyongyang planned to launch an ICBM to test its re-entry technology around voting time.

The test also comes as North Korea appears to have stepped up its nuclear production efforts and strengthened ties with Russia, deepening widespread concern in the West about the direction of the isolated nation.

North Korea said on Friday that the new Hwasong-19 missile reached a maximum altitude of 7,688 kilometers (4,777 miles) and flew a distance of 1,001 kilometers (622 miles).

“The test of the latest strategic weapons system … demonstrated the modernity and credibility of the world’s most powerful strategic deterrent,” state-run KCNA news outlet said in a commentary.

Japanese authorities reported that the missile flew for about 86 minutes and at a possible altitude of 7,000 kilometers (4,350 miles) before crashing into the sea west of Okushiri Island in northern Hokkaido at around 8:37 a.m. outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone, public broadcaster NHK. said.

“The flight time was the longest ever. Possibly the newest missile ever,” said Japanese Defense Minister General Nakatani.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the missile was fired at “a high angle,” meaning it flew almost vertically upward rather than outward, and traveled a distance of 1,000 kilometers ( 620 miles).

JCS spokesman Lee Sung-joon said it could have been a “new-type solid-propellant long-range ballistic missile” launched by a 12-axis mobile launcher (TEL), which Pyongyang has revealed last month.

Solid-fuel missiles such as North Korea’s Hwasong-18 would allow Pyongyang to launch long-range nuclear strikes faster than missiles using liquid-fuel technology.

Solid-fuel ICBMs are more stable and can be moved more easily to avoid pre-launch detection that can be initiated in minutes, experts say — compared to liquid-fuel missiles that could take hours before launch , giving opponents time to detect and neutralize the weapon.

State media published photos of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his daughter at the launch site, as well as several photos of the missile along its journey.

Joseph Dempsey, a research analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, said images released by North Korea show the latest missile to be “outwardly similar in design to the Hwasong-18.”

“But when it comes to a solid cold-launch, mobile, road-based ICBM, there’s a form-follows-function component, so we wouldn’t expect too much variation in broad design terms,” ​​he told CNN .

It is reportedly North Korea’s first ICBM launch since its date Hwasong-18 missile test in December 2023. It also launched the weapon in April and July last year.

During the December test, Japanese authorities reported that the missile flew on a very high trajectory for about 73 minutes and at an altitude of 6,000 kilometers (3,700 miles).

The missile from Thursday’s test flew higher than North Korea’s previous ICBM test, according to initial analysis by the South Korean military.

While the missile has shown the range to hit anywhere in the United States, it would need to be fired on a flatter trajectory to hit the country.

The White House on Thursday condemned the test as “a flagrant violation of several UN Security Council resolutions.” National Security Council spokesman Sean Savett said the launch “unnecessarily escalates tensions” in the region and that the U.S. “will take all necessary steps to ensure the security of the American homeland and the Republic of Korea and Japanese allies.”

In response to the missile test, South Korea and the US held a large-scale joint air exercise involving about 110 aircraft simulating “precisely striking the enemy’s TEL,” Seoul’s Defense Ministry said.

“Our military will always maintain the readiness and ability to overwhelmingly respond to any provocation from North Korea,” the ministry said.

Nuclear weapons technology and ties to Russia

Speaking at the launch site, Kim said his country “will never change its line of strengthening its nuclear forces,” KCNA reported Thursday.

In addition to an ICBM test, South Korea’s military intelligence agency also warned that North Korea could soon conduct its seventh nuclear test.

On Wednesday, the agency said Pyongyang had completed preparations for such a test at its Punggye-ri test site and that the test could take place around the time of the US election, according to two lawmakers briefed during a regular parliamentary meeting.

Since conducting its first nuclear test more than a decade ago, North Korea has advanced its weapons capabilities, with ambitions to miniaturize a warhead to fit on a long-range missile.

The launch comes after US and South Korean officials said thousands of North Korean troops are training in Russia, with the expectation that they are ready for a potential move to the front lines of Moscow’s war against Ukraine.

About 10,000 North Korean soldiers are receiving military training in eastern Russia, the Pentagon estimated Monday. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday that some troops have approached Ukraine and received Russian military uniforms and are using Russian equipment.

South Korean Defense Minister Kim Yong Hyun said North Korea is “very likely to ask” Moscow for advanced nuclear weapons technology in exchange for deploying troops to help Russia.

Pyongyang is likely to request Russian technology transfers related to tactical nuclear weapons, the advancement of North Korean intercontinental ballistic missiles, reconnaissance satellites and nuclear submarines, the minister said.

CNN’s Brad Lendon and Natasha Bertrand contributed reporting.

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