A trail of what appears to be a North Korean missile launch is seen from Incheon. North Kore on June 26. North Korea test-fired a ballistic missile toward the East Sea but the missile exploded in midair, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Yonhap

North Korea said it has successfully conducted a missile test to secure multiple warhead capability, state media said Thursday, contradicting South Korea's military announcement that the test is believed to have ended in failure.

During the test conducted Wednesday, the North's Missile Administration "successfully conducted the separation and guidance control test of individual mobile warheads," the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said, adding that the test was meaningful in achieving "the goal of rapidly developing the missile technologies."

The test used the first-stage engine of an intermediate-range solid-fuel ballistic missile within a 170-200 kilometer radius, which is favorable for ensuring maximum safety and measuring the flight characteristics of individual mobile warheads, the KCNA said.

The separated mobile warheads were guided correctly to three target coordinates, it said.

The effectiveness of a decoy separated from the missile was also verified by anti-air radar, it added.

The test was overseen by Pak Jong-chon, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and Kim Jong-sik, first vice department director of the WPK Central Committee, it said.

The announcement contradicts South Korea's announcement that the missile exploded in air.

Officials of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said the missile was launched from an area in or around Pyongyang at around 5:30 a.m., but exploded over the East Sea after flying some 250 kilometers.

A military source told Yonhap News Agency that the North could have have test-fired a hypersonic missile.

However, the North said the test "used the first-stage engine of an intermediate-range solid-fuel ballistic missile within a 170-200 kilometer radius."

The separated mobile warheads were guided correctly to three target coordinates, the KCNA said.

The effectiveness of a decoy separated from the missile was also verified by anti-air radar, it added.

The test was overseen by Pak Jong-chon, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), and Kim Jong-sik, first vice department director of the WPK Central Committee, the KCNA said.

The officials emphasized that enhancing "the MIRV capability is a very important defense technological task and a top priority of the WPK Central Committee," the KCNA reported, suggesting it might also be a top priority for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

Developing MIRV technology was included in North Korea's five-year development plan, which was unveiled during the eighth congress of the WPK in January 2021.

North Korea claimed that "the test is part of the administration's normal activities," the KCNA said.

This is the first time North Korea has publicly disclosed that it conducted a missile test to secure multiple warhead capability.

South Korea, the United States and Japan condemned North Korea's ballistic missile launch as a violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions. (Yonhap)