SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observed the test-firing of strategic cruise missiles, state media reported Monday, as the U.S. and South Korean militaries kicked off major annual drills that the North views as an invasion rehearsal.
The North’s report on missile tests came three days after the leaders of the U.S., South Korea and Japan held their first stand-alone trilateral summit and agreed to increase their cooperation on their ballistic missile defenses to counter North Korea’s evolving nuclear and missile power.
During an inspection of a navy flotilla on an unspecified date, Kim boarded a patrol ship to review its weapons and preparations for combat, according to the official Korean Central News Agency. It said Kim later watched the ship’s seamen conduct a drill of launching “strategic” cruise missiles, a word implying the weapons were developed to carry nuclear warheads.
A state media photo showed him watching a soaring missile from the patrol ship from another place, not on the vessel. KCNA said the missiles hit designated targets without any errors, demonstrating the ship’s readiness and attack capability.
Kim said he would bolster efforts to build powerful warships and modernize shipboard and underwater weapons systems for the North’s navy. He called for the country’s sailors to build “overwhelming ideological and spiritual strength,” saying that is more important than numerical or technical superiority of weapons, according to KCNA.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that the military will maintain firm readiness based on its capacity to overwhelmingly defeat potential North Korean provocations.
“North Korea’s naval cruise missile may appear technologically behind but is still a real threat,” Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul, said. “The latest test shows Pyongyang’s intention of attacking South Korea from many angles if it believes it is at risk.”
Launches from North Korea’s huge stockpile of ballistic missiles are prohibited by UN Security Council resolutions. Its cruise missile tests aren’t banned, but they still pose a threat because they fly at a lower altitude to avoid radar detection. Analysts say North Korea aims to use cruise missiles to strike incoming U.S. warships and aircraft carriers in the event of conflict.