N.Korea Tests 'Solid-Fuel Intercontinental Missile'

North Korea said Thursday that it test-fired a new type of solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile the previous day.

"It flew about 1,001.2 km for 4,491 seconds at a maximum altitude of 6,648.4 km, before accurately landing on a pre-set area" in the East Sea, the official [North] Korean Central New Agency said.

Leader Kim Jong-un watched the launch and said it was part of the regime's efforts to "bolster self-defense" to counter joint military drills between the U.S. and South Korea.

The flight time was the longest ever for a North Korean missile. If it had been launched on a normal trajectory, it could have traveled more than 15,000 km, enough to reach the U.S. mainland, experts here speculate.