North Korea said Monday that its test-firing a day earlier of a solid-fuel, medium-range missile capable of striking most of Japan was "perfect" and that the weapon was ready to be deployed "for action."

The North's official Korean Central News Agency said leader Kim Jong Un had observed the Pukguksong-2 missile test Sunday, which had verified the reliability and accuracy of the solid-fuel engine's operations, stage separation and late-stage nuclear warhead guidance.

The launch, it added, was recorded by a camera mounted on the missile's warhead, and pictures of the Earth said to have been taken from the rocket from space — the first such photos released by the North — accompanied another report by state media.