North Korea test-fires cruise missiles as Trump visits South Korea

Just before US President Donald Trump makes a visit to South Korea, North Korea test-fired a number of sea-to-surface cruise missiles into its western waters, according to state media.

The missiles, which were launched on Tuesday in the Yellow Sea, flew for more than two hours before hitting targets, according to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Wednesday.

Top military official Pak Jong Chon, who oversaw the test, claimed that “significant successes” were being made in developing North Korea’s “nuclear forces” as a “war deterrent,” according to KCNA.

According to Pak, the test was intended to assess “the reliability of various strategic offensive means and impress their abilities upon the enemies.”

He continued, “It is our responsibility and obligation to ceaselessly strengthen the nuclear combat posture.”

The military confirmed to the joint chiefs of staff in South Korea on Wednesday that they had detected the North Korean launch preparations and that they had fired cruise missiles into the nation’s northwestern waters on Tuesday around 3 o’clock (06:00 GMT).

The joint chiefs stated that South Korea and the US were conducting an analysis of the weapons and still had a “dominant response” to any provocation from North Korea.

Following short-range ballistic missile tests last week, North Korea said its latest launches included a new hypersonic system designed to strengthen its nuclear deterrent.

The most recent test occurred just before Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s scheduled summit, which is taking place in Gyeongju, where South Korea is hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings this year.

Trump is scheduled to attend a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping while he is in South Korea, where he has expressed interest in meeting with Kim.

However, South Korean officials have stated that a Trump-Kim meeting is unlikely.

Kim has stated that he still has “fond memories” of Trump, but that he will only be open to discussions if Washington stops requesting that his nation abandon its nuclear weapons program.

Since Kim’s high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with Trump ended in 2019, during the US president’s first term, North Korea has avoided engaging in any kind of dialogue with Washington and Seoul.

Trump was in Tokyo on Tuesday when he met with the families of the Japanese who had been abducted by North Korea and told them that “the US is with them all the way” as they sought assistance in finding their loved ones.

After years of denial, North Korea admitted in 2002 that it had abducted 13 Japanese citizens decades ago and used them to train spies in Japanese customs and customs.