13 October 2022, at Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, a television screen displays an image of North Korea’s missile launch during a news broadcast. Ahn Young-joon / AP
Kim Jong Un supervised the launch of two long-range cruise missiles, state media reported Thursday, adding that the missiles were already deployed to “tactical nuclear” units of the North Korean army.
In recent weeks, Kim has overseen a flurry of ballistic missile tests, which Pyongyang has described as tactical nuclear rehearsals simulating the destruction of South Korean airports and military installations.
The purpose of the Wednesday test of the two cruise missiles was to “improve the combat effectiveness” of the weapons, which were “deployed at the units of the Korean People’s Army for the operation of tactical nuclear weapons,” according to KCNA.
According to the Korean Central News Agency, the cruise missiles, which travel at lower altitudes than ballistic missiles, making them harder to detect and intercept, went 1,240 miles over the ocean before striking their objectives.
KCNA said that Kim expressed “great delight” with the tests, which he said demonstrated that the country’s nuclear fighting forces were “fully equipped for actual war” and delivered a “clear warning to the adversaries.”
North Korea has previously launched “strategic” cruise missiles, but this is the first time it has claimed that they have a nuclear role and are operational. Analysts remain skeptical about Pyongyang’s assertions, stating that it has not demonstrated that it can build compact enough nuclear warheads.
Professor Leif-Eric Easley of Ewha University in Seoul opined that North Korea’s cruise missiles, air force, and tactical nuclear devices are likely to be far less capable than their propaganda implies.
“The Kim dictatorship is occasionally remarkably candid about its aims for weapon development, but it has a tendency to overestimate its strength and capabilities,” he noted.
Kim has redoubled his efforts to develop and test his prohibited nuclear arsenal, while talks have been stuck for some time and the United Nations has been unable to impose further sanctions due to a stalemate over Ukraine.
Officials in Seoul and Washington have forewarned for months that Pyongyang is preparing its seventh nuclear test.
KCNA said on Thursday that Kim stated that North Korea will “concentrate all efforts on the ceaseless and accelerated development of the country nuclear combat armed forces.”
Technically, Pyongyang is not prohibited from testing cruise missiles by the United Nations, but all ballistic missile launches violate restrictions and are normally reported by Seoul or Tokyo. Neither had warned about the Wednesday examination.
At a key party convention in January 2021, Kim made the acquisition of tactical nukes — smaller, lighter bombs suited for battlefield use — a primary objective.
“The most recent test indicates that the North is employing tactical nuclear capabilities on cruise missiles, which are more difficult to detect because to their low-altitude flight,” Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification told Agence France-Presse.
“It demonstrates Pyongyang’s ability to mount nuclear warheads,” he added, adding that cruise missiles can also have erratic flight trajectories, making them more difficult to intercept.
North Korea updated its nuclear laws last month to allow preemptive strikes, and Kim declared North Korea a “irreversible” nuclear power, virtually removing the idea of negotiations over its nuclear arsenal.
Since then, Seoul, Tokyo, and Washington have increased their joint military exercises, including twice deploying a nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier to the region, which has infuriated Pyongyang, which views such operations as invasion rehearsals.
In response, North Korea planned exercises that it said earlier this week simulated the use of tactical nuclear weapons against South Korean ports, airports, and military command posts.