North Korea Successfully Tests 1st ‘Strategic’ Long-Range Cruise Missile: Report

North Korea Successfully Tests 1st ‘Strategic’ Long-Range Cruise Missile: Report
The Academy of National Defense Science conducts long-range cruise missile tests in North Korea, as pictured in this combination of undated photos supplied by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Sept. 13, 2021. (KCNA via Reuters)
Lorenz Duchamps
9/13/2021
Updated:
9/13/2021

North Korea over the weekend successfully test-fired a new long-range cruise missile capable of hitting targets 930 miles away, according to the country’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The multi-day operation was confirmed as a “success” by leading officials and scientists of the Academy of National Defense Science who took part in the testing of the new type of cruise missile that was launched on Sept. 11 and Sept. 12, KCNA report.

The missile, dubbed “a strategic weapon of great significance,” flew 930 miles before hitting its targets and falling into the country’s territorial waters during the tests, according to the agency. The weapon system had been in development for two years.

A collage published by KCNA shows the missile being fired from a launch vehicle, as well as the rocket artillery traveling in horizontal flight. The missile reportedly traveled for 7,580 seconds in the air above the territorial land and waters of the communist country before hitting its target.

U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolutions have barred North Korea from testing ballistic missiles, and the country has been heavily sanctioned over its missile and nuclear weapons programs. However, the testing of cruise missiles usually generates less interest, because they aren’t explicitly banned under the UNSC.

North Korea has also ignored offers from the Biden administration to resume negotiations to abandon its nuclear program. The most recent tests were the most significant since President Joe Biden took office. In January, just hours after Biden’s inauguration, North Korea test-fired cruise missiles, while later in March, it tested a new tactical short-range ballistic missile.

President Donald Trump, who met with Kim Jong Un three times during his four years in office, was the first U.S. president to set foot on North Korean soil.

North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (L) and President Donald Trump shake hands during a meeting on the south side of the Military Demarcation Line that divides North and South Korea, in the Joint Security Area (JSA) of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) on June 30, 2019. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images)
North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un (L) and President Donald Trump shake hands during a meeting on the south side of the Military Demarcation Line that divides North and South Korea, in the Joint Security Area (JSA) of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized zone (DMZ) on June 30, 2019. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images)

Park Won-gon, professor of North Korean Studies at Ewha Womans University, told AFP that the new strategic missile “poses a considerable threat,” adding that he believes it’s “very likely that there will be more tests for the development of various weapons systems.”

“If the North has sufficiently miniaturized a nuclear warhead, it can be loaded onto a cruise missile as well,” Park noted.

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement that it’s monitoring the situation and U.S. officials are in close contact with allies and partners following the reports of rocket artillery tests.

“This activity highlights DPRK’s continuing focus on developing its military program and the threats that pose to its neighbors and the international community,” the combatant command responsible for the Indo-Pacific region stated. “The U.S. commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea and Japan remains ironclad.”

This photo provided by the North Korean government shows missiles during a military parade marking the ruling party congress, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Jan. 14, 2021. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)
This photo provided by the North Korean government shows missiles during a military parade marking the ruling party congress, at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea, on Jan. 14, 2021. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP)

Cruise missiles and short-range ballistic missiles that can be armed with either conventional or nuclear bombs are particularly destabilizing in the event of conflict as it can be unclear which kind of warhead they’re carrying, according to analysts.

It’s unclear whether North Korea has mastered the technology needed to build warheads small enough to be carried on a cruise missile, but regime leader Kim Jong Un said earlier this year that developing smaller bombs is a top goal.

Kim didn’t appear to have attended the test, while KCNA stated that Pak Jong Chon, a member of the Workers’ Party’s powerful politburo and a secretary of its central committee, oversaw it.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Lorenz Duchamps is a news writer for NTD, The Epoch Times’ sister media, focusing primarily on the United States, world, and entertainment news.
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