“We are ready to act whatever it may be in defending its sovereign right and interests,” Kim, a powerful government official in her own right, said in a statement carried by KCNA.

Her remarks follow the failure of a North Korean satellite launch on Wednesday.

The launch appeared to have been rushed and may need several weeks at least to fix its rocket’s problem, a South Korean lawmaker said on Wednesday citing the South’s intelligence agency.

In a rare admission of failure by North Korea, KCNA reported that a rocket carrying a military reconnaissance satellite known as “Malligyong-1” crashed into the sea after an accident occurred.

The launch was widely criticised including by South Korea, Japan and the US.

UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres said any launch by Pyongyang using ballistic missile technology breaches Security Council resolutions, a spokesperson said.

In her statement, Kim said the criticisms of Wednesday’s test were “self-contradiction” as the US and other countries have already launched “thousands of satellites.”

In a separate statement carried by KCNA, North Korea’s vice foreign minister Kim Son Gyong criticised US-led military drills in the region including a multinational anti-proliferation naval drill.

Commercial satellite imagery of one of the launch pads at the Sohae Satellite Launching Station showed more than a dozen vehicles, US-based 38 North, a program that analyzes North Korea, said in a report.

“Which pad was used for the launch cannot yet be confirmed,” the report said. “However, activity at the main launch pad is consistent with post-launch assessment and clean-up efforts.”