North Korea said on Monday it fired long-range strategic cruise missiles into the sea to test the country’s nuclear deterrence, days after it showed apparent progress in the construction of its first nuclear-powered submarine.
The missile launches occurred off the country’s west coast on Sunday in the presence of leader Kim Jong Un, the official Korean Central News Agency reported.
It said Mr Kim expressed “great satisfaction” over the launches and noted that testing the reliability of North Korea's nuclear deterrence and demonstrating its might were “just a responsible exercise of the right to self-defence and war deterrence” in the face of external security threats.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said it was aware of several cruise missile launches made from North Korea’s capital region on Sunday morning. It said South Korea maintained a readiness to repel any potential North Korean provocations through its alliance with the US.
UN Security Council resolutions prohibit North Korea from launching missiles involving its huge stockpile of ballistic missiles. Its cruise missile tests aren’t banned, but they still pose a threat to the US and South Korea because they are highly manoeuvrable and fly at low altitudes to avoid radar detection.
Analysts said North Korea would aim to use cruise missiles to strike US warships and aircraft carriers in the event of conflict.
Sunday's launches are the latest weapons display by North Korea. Last week, the country test-launched new anti-air missiles off its east coast and displayed photos showing a largely completed hull of a developmental nuclear-powered submarine. North Korea implied it would arm the submarine with nuclear missiles.
A nuclear-powered submarine is among a slew of sophisticated weapons systems that Mr Kim has vowed to introduce to cope with what he describes as US-led security threats.
Some experts say North Korea’s recent alignment with Russia, including sending troops and military equipment to aid its war in Ukraine, may have helped it to receive crucial technologies in return.
North Korea could further increase its weapons demonstrations ahead of its planned ruling Workers' Party congress early next year, observers said.
North Korea has focused on weapons-testing activities to expand its nuclear arsenal since Mr Kim's high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with US president Donald Trump collapsed in 2019.
But in an apparent response to Mr Trump’s repeated outreach, Mr Kim suggested in September he could return to talks if the US dropped “its delusional obsession with denuclearisation” of North Korea.
Experts said Mr Kim might think his enlarged nuclear arsenal would give him greater leverage to wrest concessions in potential talks with Mr Trump.
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