Pyongyang: North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has overseen a ground test of a high-thrust solid-fuel missile engine using a composite carbon fiber material, saying the test was a part of the North's five-year plan to upgrade its strategic capabilities.

According to Qatar News Agency, Kim supervised the test of a newly upgraded engine made with composite carbon fiber material, featuring a maximum thrust of 2,500 kilonewtons. The Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) did not disclose the date or location of the test.

The test was part of a five-year national defense development plan aimed at steadily upgrading strategic strike means. KCNA quoted Kim as stating that North Korea's defense capabilities had "entered a significant phase of change in the building of the strategic forces."

It marks the North's first high-thrust solid-fuel missile engine test since the last one conducted in September of the previous year, when the engine's maximum thrust was recorded at 1,971 kN. The engine is believed to have been developed for use in the Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile, which is currently under development.

Kim emphasized the "great significance" of the test in elevating the country's strategic military capabilities to the highest level. He stated that it "fully conforms with the national strategy and the military demand for modernizing the strategic forces."

The country's defense capabilities "would be further transformed and accelerated by the development and introduction of better components with superior economic and technical effectiveness as proven in the test," he noted.

KCNA also reported that Kim inspected a separate test organized by the Armored Weapons Institute of the Academy of Defense Sciences. This test aimed to assess the performance of new main battle tanks, examining the combat effectiveness of the protection system against anti-tank means from different directions, confirming its defensive performance with a 100 percent success rate.