Updated Jan 11, 2022 - World

North Korea claims second successful hypersonic missile test in a week

Rebecca Falconer

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a televised meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, at a railway station in Seoul on January 1 — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appears in a broadcast at a railway station in Seoul. Photo: Jung Yeon-je/AFP via Getty Images

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un watched the successful launch of the country's second hypersonic missile test in less than a week after, as he vowed to bolster the country's nuclear weapons program, state media reported.

Why it matters: South Korea's military, which detected the suspected ballistic missile into the eastern sea, said Tuesday's launch was assessed to be "more advanced" than the Jan. 5 one, per Reuters.

Kim's vow is the latest indication that North Korea does not intend to rejoin stalled denuclearization talks, and came as the UN Security Council met in New York to discuss last week's test.

What they're saying: The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement that it was consulting closely with allies and had determined that the latest launch was of no "immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to our allies," but it "highlights the destabilizing impact" of Pyongyang's " illicit weapons program."

On Monday, six countries, including the U.S., U.K. and Japan, issued a statement condemning last week's launch and calling on North Korea "to refrain from further destabilizing actions ... and engage in meaningful dialogue towards our shared goal of complete denuclearization."

Go deeper: President Moon Jae-in: End to Korean War agreed to "in principle"

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

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North Korea claims second successful hypersonic missile test in a week

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