North Korea: latest ICBM launch shows capacity for "fatal nuclear counterattack"

• The ICBM launch also offered "clear proof of the sure reliability of our powerful physical nuclear deterrent," according to KCNA.
• This was North Korea's first missile test since Jan. 1, AP reported.

The big picture: “This launch needlessly raises tensions and risks destabilizing the security situation in the region,” National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement Saturday.

• The U.S. also responded by conducting bilateral joint air exercises with both South Korea and Japan on Sunday.
• South Korea's military said in a statement Sunday that the exercise demonstrated the U.S.' "ironclad commitment to the defence of the Korean Peninsula and the implementation of extended deterrence," Reuters reported.
• Japan's Defense Ministry said in a statement that the bilateral exercise "reaffirms the strong will between Japan and the United States to respond to any situation," adding that the security environment is "increasingly severe," per Reuters.

What they're saying: Kim Yo-jong, sister of Kim Jong-un, accused the U.S. and South Korea in a statement Sunday of "openly showing their dangerous greed and attempt to gain the military upper hand and predominant position in the Korean Peninsula," AP reported.

• “I warn that we will watch every movement of the enemy and take corresponding and very powerful and overwhelming counteraction against its every move hostile to us,” she added.

What to watch: The U.S. and South Korea are slated to conduct joint nuclear drills on Feb. 22, per Reuters.