North Korea fired several cruise missiles toward the Yellow Sea on Wednesday (24 January), South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff reported.
“Our military detected several cruise missiles launched by North Korea towards the Yellow Sea at around 7am today. The detailed specifications are being closely analysed by South Korean and US intelligence authorities.”
In the new year, Pyongyang accelerated weapons tests, including what it called an “underwater nuclear weapon system” and a solid-propellant hypersonic ballistic missile. Unlike their ballistic counterparts, cruise missile tests are not prohibited by current UN sanctions.
Cruise missiles are usually jet-propelled and fly at lower altitudes than ballistic missiles, which makes them more difficult to spot and intercept.
The latest launch comes amid a 10-day infiltration drill by South Korean special forces off the east coast “in light of serious security situations” with the North. According to the South’s Navy, the drills will continue until Thursday.
We will achieve our mission to infiltrate deep into the enemy’s territory and neutralise them completely under any circumstances.
Both North and South Korea reneged on key agreements to reduce tensions, reinforced border security and conducted live-fire drills along the border.
Last week, Kim Jong Un declared his neighbour a “principal enemy” of his country. He also declared that Pyongyang would not recognise the de facto maritime border between the two countries, dubbed the Northern Limit Line, and called for a constitutional amendment to allow the North to “occupy” Seoul in times of war, North Korean media reported.
At the same time, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol told his cabinet that if nuclear-armed North Korea carried out a provocation, his country would retaliate “multiple times stronger,” referring to the “overwhelming response capabilities” of its armed forces.
Earlier this month, North Korea launched a hypersonic ballistic missile, just days after Pyongyang conducted live-fire drills near the country’s tense maritime border with South Korea, prompting retaliatory exercises and evacuation orders for some border islands belonging to the South.
