Korea

North Korea says it launched missile that can carry nuclear warhead

North Korea said Monday that the medium-range strategic missile it tested over the weekend is capable of carrying a nuclear warhead. 

The communist dictatorship's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said the Hwasong-12, launched early Sunday Korea time, was "capable of carrying a large-size heavy nuclear warhead." North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un was said to have witnessed the test and "hugged officials in the field of rocket research, saying that they worked hard to achieve a great thing," according to KCNA.

North Korean propaganda must be considered with wariness, but if confirmed, the claim marks another big step forward in the country's escalating efforts to field a nuclear-tipped missile capable of reaching the U.S. mainland. Outside experts don't believe the North can do that yet, but each new test pushes them closer to the goal.