North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has defended the country’s recent nuclear test as a self-defense measure.

The North’s official Korean Central News Agency(KCNA) said Sunday that Kim made the remark during his visit to the Ministry of People’s Armed Forces.

No information was revealed regarding the timing of the visit, except that it was made after the “exciting crash of thunder” from the country’s self-proclaimed first hydrogen bomb test “resonated in the world.”

The state-run KCNA quoted Kim as saying that what he called a successful hydrogen bomb test was a measure to safeguard the country’s autonomy and the lives of its people from the threats of a nuclear war.

He also claimed that a nuclear test is a legitimate right of a sovereign state and that no one can take issue with that.

Meanwhile, the KCNA said that following the visit to the ministry, Kim invited the scientists under the ministry to acknowledge their contribution to the latest nuclear test.

The KCNA said while having a photo session with the scientists at the Worker’s Party headquarters, Kim asked the scientists to bear more fruit in their research in order to enhance the country’s nuclear deterrence for self-defense.