SEOUL, South Korea – North Korea fired multiple cruise missiles into the sea on Wednesday, the South Korean military said, three days after The North launched what it called a simulated nuclear attack on South Korea.
The launch follows the North’s fourth round of weapons tests The US and South Korean militaries began large-scale military exercises last week which the North sees as a rehearsal for an attack.
The 11-day US-South Korean military drills will end on Thursday. But North Korea is expected to continue its testing activities as the US reportedly plans to send an aircraft carrier in the coming days for another joint exercise with South Korea.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said they detected “several” cruise missile launches from the North’s northeastern coastal city of Hamhung. It said the missiles had flown into the North’s eastern waters and that South Korean and US intelligence authorities were analyzing more details.
Lee Jin-man/AP
The Joint Chiefs of Staff said South Korea’s military will maintain strong readiness and successfully complete the remaining exercises with the United States.
UN Security Council resolutions prohibit North Korea from launching ballistic missiles but not cruise missile tests. But experts say the cruise missiles developed by North Korea also pose a serious threat to its neighbors, as they are designed to fly at low altitudes to avoid radar detection. The North has described the cruise missiles it recently tested as “strategic,” meaning they intend to arm them with nuclear weapons.
Capping off a record year of testing activity, the North stepped up its provocative run of weapons displays in 2023, launching nearly 20 missiles in 10 separate events. The weapons tested included short-range nuclear missiles capable of hitting South Korea and intercontinental ballistic missiles designed to strike the US mainland.
Wednesday’s launches were the North’s first tests of cruise missiles since March 21, when it said it fired two cruise missiles from a submarine. Last month, North Korea launched four long-range cruise missiles that demonstrated a potential range of 1,240 miles to hit targets.
On Sunday, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the test of a short-range ballistic missile that was likely launched from a silo dug into the ground. North Korean state media called the launch a simulated nuclear attack on unspecified South Korean targets.
More
Thanks for reading CBS News.
Create your free account or login
For more features.