North Korean leader Kim Jong-un praised the scientists and technicians behind the launch of a military spy satellite on Tuesday.

According to the North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency on Friday, Kim Jong-un visited the National Aerospace Development Administration the day before, where he called the satellite a “full-fledged exercise of the right to self-defense.”

The regime's leader praised the scientists, engineers and executives who led the successful launch, adding that the deployment of a reconnaissance satellite has greatly improved the regime’s war deterrence capabilities.

He also called for efforts to achieve the “immediate and long-term goal” of developing aerospace recon capabilities.

Kim made the trip to the space center in the immediate wake of Pyongyang’s announcement that it had successfully launched the new “Chollima-1” carrier rocket loaded with the “Malligyong-1” recon satellite as payload.