N. Korea May Conduct Nuclear Warhead, Ballistic Missile Tests Soon

North Korea said Tuesday it plans to conduct nuclear warhead and ballistic missile tests "soon", state media reported, in an escalation of threats against Seoul and Washington.

"Kim Jong Un ... gave orders of conducting a test for estimating the heat stability of rocket warhead tip, designed and manufactured with domestic efforts and technology, and the erosion of heat-resistant coating material," Yonhap News reported quoting the North's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) report.

"Declaring that a nuclear warhead explosion test and a test-fire of several kinds of ballistic rockets able to carry nuclear warheads will be conducted in a short time to further enhance the reliance of nuclear attack capability, he instructed the relevant section to make prearrangement for them to the last detail," it added.

Tensions have been escalating on the Korean Peninsula since North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test. Last month, the North also launched a rocket carrying the Kwangmyongsong-4 satellite into space, which was viewed by many as a cover for testing its intercontinental ballistic missile technology.