North Korea announced on Wednesday that it had conducted a test firing of sea-to-surface cruise missiles into its western waters. The missile tests, carried out on Tuesday, were declared successful by North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), stating that the missiles flew for over two hours and hit targets accurately. According to the agency, these weapons will enhance the country’s nuclear-armed military capabilities.
South Korea’s joint chiefs of staff reported detecting the launch preparations and confirmed that the cruise missiles were launched in North Korea’s northwestern waters around 3 p.m. local time on Tuesday. Both South Korea and the United States are jointly analyzing the weapons and maintaining a high level of combined defense readiness to respond decisively to any provocations from North Korea.
The North Korean announcement coincided with an upcoming summit between President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung in Gyeongju, where South Korea is hosting this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings.
KCNA revealed that the missile tests were overseen by senior military figure Pak Jong Chon, who also inspected training for sailors on North Korea’s newly developed destroyers Choe Hyon and Kang Kon, which North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has identified as crucial assets for strengthening the navy.
These recent missile launches by North Korea follow last week’s tests of short-range ballistic missiles involving a new hypersonic system aimed at bolstering its nuclear deterrence capabilities.
While President Trump had shown interest in meeting Kim during his visit to South Korea, where he is scheduled to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, South Korean officials have expressed skepticism about the possibility of a Trump-Kim meeting.
Since the breakdown of high-stakes nuclear diplomacy between Kim and Trump in 2019, North Korea has avoided engaging in discussions with Washington and Seoul. Kim’s current foreign policy focus is on Russia, with recent efforts including sending troops and military equipment to support President Vladimir Putin’s actions in Ukraine.
Kim reiterated last month that North Korea would not engage in talks with the United States unless Washington abandons its insistence on North Korea’s denuclearization, despite Trump’s repeated calls for renewed diplomacy.