North Korea performed its first underwater-launched missile tests in nearly three years on Wednesday, likely from an as-yet-deployed submarine that it says is designed to launch nuclear weapons.
The high-profile tests come as North Korea is dialling up weapons demonstrations in an apparent bid to pressure the United States to offer greater concessions if it wants a resumption of diplomacy.
The official Korean Central News Agency said Thursday the military tested two types of strategic cruise missiles in the country's eastern waters. It said the tests were aimed at assessing the readiness of North Korea's underwater combat systems and demonstrating the reliability of its nuclear deterrent.
KCNA didn't say what launch platform was used. But the agency's photos of the launch suggested the country mobilized the “Hero Kim Kun Ok” submarine that was unveiled in 2023 with great fanfare but drew outside skepticism about its claimed capabilities.
In September 2023, North Korea launched the “Hero Kim Kun Ok,” saying the submarine was capable of launching tactical nuclear weapons from underwater. State media photos showed the submarine has at least 10 missile launch tubes in addition to its torpedo tubes.
At the time, many foreign experts were skeptical the submarine would work as North Korea described, saying it was likely a modification of an existing, aging diesel-fuelled submarine.
A lack of known weapons tests from the submarine in the past three years signalled it had some technical issues including an inability to right itself.
But Wednesday's tests indicated North Korea had resolved those issues and started testing the weapons to be carried by the submarine, according to analyst Shin Jong-woo at South Korea's Defence and Security Forum.
North Korea will likely also test ballistic missiles from the submarine before it is deployed by the navy, Shin said.
South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected the launches and concluded the missiles were launched from a submarine, with one fired from a vertical launch tube and the other from a torpedo tube.
The South's military didn't immediately specify the North Korean submarine that it believed was involved.
“North Korea would want to say it would never give up its nukes,” Moon said. “It's sending a message to the US saying that 'we've perfected land-based nuclear weapons and are deploying nuclear weapons to the maritime domain so that you shouldn't demand our denuclearisation any longer'.” - AP
