Pyongyang, Sep 10 (IANS): North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called the country's sixth nuclear test a "great victory" and applauded the work of officials and experts in charge of the launch, state-media reported on Sunday.

During a celebration held in Pyongyang on Saturday honouring the success which also coincided with the 69th anniversary of the founding of North Korea, Kim said that the nuclear test was a "great victory won by the Korean people at the cost of their blood", Efe news quoted the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) as saying

On September 3, the North Korean army carried out its sixth and most powerful nuclear test with a hydrogen bomb that triggered widespread condemnation by the international community and has further elevated tensions in the region.

Saturday's celebration, also attended by scientists and military officials, marked the successful nuclear test and praised those who performed the task with realism and pride, KCNA reported.

KCNA, in its report, deemed North Korea as an "invincible nuclear nation".

North Korea's ruling Workers Party's daily, the Rodong Sinmun, said Kim defended nuclear weapons on grounds that they make the country safer and that Pyongyang must continue developing more sophisticated arsenal.