After conducting a new ballistic missile test this weekend, North Korea is saying that their new weapon is capable of carrying a nuclear payload.

The rogue nation drew international condemnation again after it fired a Hwasong-12 missile that traveled over 489 miles before falling into the Sea of Japan. State news agency KCNA put out a report which claimed that the missile test was held to verify “the tactical and technological specifications of the newly developed ballistic rocket capable of carrying a large-size heavy nuclear warhead.”

“If the U.S. awkwardly attempts to provoke the DPRK, it will not escape from the biggest disaster in the history,” said KCNA. The state report also claimed that North Korea possesses missiles capable of reaching the American mainland, and that any provocation would result in a “retaliatory strike.”

CNN reports that the missile achieved an altitude of 1,240 miles and flew for 30 minutes before crashing off the coast of Vladivostok in eastern Russia. The launch occurred days after Moon Jae-in was sworn in as the new president of South Korea, and it also comes amid escalating tensions between North Korea and the United States.

http://www.mediaite.com/online/north-korea-claims-new-ballistic-missile-can-carry-a-nuclear-warhead/