N. Korea in rocket test

North Korea has conducted a ground test of a new type of high-thrust rocket engine, the North’s state media said Sunday.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attended Saturday’s test at the Sohae launch site, according to the Korean Central News Agency. Kim said the “whole world will soon witness what eventful significance the great victory won today carries” and claimed the test marks the “March 18 revolution.”

The report indicated that the engine is to be used for North Korea’s space program.

North Korea is banned by the United Nations from conducting long-range missile tests, but it claims its satellite program is for peaceful use, a claim many in the US and elsewhere question.

The test was conducted as Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was in China on a swing through Asia.

It’s hard to know whether this test was deliberately timed to coincide with Tillerson’s visit.