North Korea said Tuesday it successfully test-fired a new intermediate-range hypersonic ballistic missile, claiming the weapon would "reliably contain any rivals in the Pacific region."

North Korea says its latest weapons test was a new hypersonic intermediate-range missile designed to strike targets in the Pacific as leader Kim Jong Un vowed to further expand his collection of nuclear-capable weapons to counter rivals.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said the nation’s new hypersonic missile will keep any rivals in the Pacific region in check, following a test launch on Monday that coincided with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to Seoul.

North Korea has tested a new hypersonic missile, which Kim Jong-un said would help deter the country’s Pacific rivals, state media reported on Tuesday.

North Korea has claimed it fired a new intermediate-range ballistic missile tipped with a hypersonic warhead which "will reliably contain any rivals in the Pacific region". The launch on Monday - Pyongyang's first in two months - came as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in Seoul for talks with some of South Korea's key leaders.

Kim Jong Un described the missile test as a crucial achievement in his goals to bolster North Korea's nuclear deterrence. Lee Sung Joon, Spokesperson of South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, downplayed the test,

North Korea claims a successful solid-fuel IRBM launch, but South Korea and experts remain skeptical of its performance and hypersonic tech.