North Korea Tests Strategic Submarine-Launched Cruise Missiles
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North Korea announced that on Wednesday, October 14, it test-fired two types of submarine-launched cruise missiles into the Sea of Japan, also known as the East Sea. The state news agency KCNA described the projectiles as 'strategic cruise missiles' and stated that the exercise was aimed at evaluating the mobilization readiness of underwater combat systems and improving the Navy's training for its strategic missions.
Two launch methods
According to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, one of the missiles was fired from a vertical launching system and the other through a torpedo tube, which would explain the images released by KCNA showing one projectile rising vertically amid a cloud of smoke and another emerging at an angle of about 45 degrees. Other photographs showed a missile flying on a horizontal trajectory over the water and a submarine on the surface.
Uncertainty over the submarine
Neither KCNA nor South Korean sources confirmed the name or exact identity of the vessel used. South Korean analysts noted that the images appeared to correspond to the Kim Kun Ok Hero, a modified diesel-electric submarine unveiled by North Korea in September 2023, although the launch platform was not independently verified. Both Maritime Executive and Marine Insight pointed out that it remains unclear whether this was an operational submarine or a submersible test platform, as Pyongyang has used on other occasions.
Reactions from Washington and Seoul
US Indo-Pacific Command confirmed the launch of two North Korean ballistic missiles the previous Monday, but has so far made no statement regarding the cruise missiles. South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, meanwhile, said it had tracked both launches from liftoff through the final phases of flight, although it did not publicly announce them, explaining to Aju Press that it typically only reports on ballistic missile launches, not cruise missile launches.
Precedent and strategic reading
KCNA did not disclose designations, range, accuracy, or details about the missiles' warheads, nor did it confirm whether they are capable of carrying nuclear payloads. North Korea had previously tested a submarine-launched cruise missile, the Pulhwasal-3-31, in January 2024. Hong Min, of the Korea Institute for National Unification, explained that angled launches allow the missiles to fly at low altitude from the outset, making them harder to detect and intercept by missile defense systems.
