North Korea reported on Friday that he tried a “submarine nuclear weapons system” in response to joint naval exercises USA, South Korea and Japanin which an American nuclear aircraft carrier participated.
The exercises “seriously threatened security” from the North, so, in response, Pyongyang “carried out a major test of its submarine nuclear weapons system’Haeil-5-23′“, according to a statement from the Ministry of Defense collected by the state news agency KCNA.
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Last year, the isolated communist country had reported several tests of a suspected underwater nuclear attack drone (a different version of the Haeil) that could unleash “a radioactive tsunami”.
Analysts then questioned whether Pyongyang had this type of weapons.
This week, Seoul, Washington and Tokyo naval exercises were deployed off the coast of the Jeju Island which, according to the allied countries, were responding to the launch on Sunday of a hypersonic missile by North Korea.
The maneuvers mobilized nine ships from the three countries, including the American aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson.
A North Korean Defense Ministry spokesman said Friday that these exercises “They constitute a cause of greater destabilization of the regional situation and are an act that seriously threatened security.”, according to KCNA.
The spokesperson did not reveal the exact date of the weapons test, but said that he had guaranteed that his “Nuclear-based submarine counterattack posture being further refined”.
“Its various maritime and submarine response actions will continue to deter hostile military maneuvers by the vessels of the United States and its allies.”he added.
The situation in the korean peninsula worsened in recent months, with both sides abandoning a key agreement to contain tensions, increasing their border security and conducting live-fire drills along the border.
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The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-undeclared last week the South as his “main enemy” and dissolved government agencies dedicated to promoting cooperation and reunification of the peninsula.
He also threatened war if Seoul violated “even 0.001 millimeters” of its territory.
Drone deployment?
The new announcement of the underwater test “It is a clear sign of the deployment of Haeil drones for use in its maritime fleet“, he pointed out Hong Minan analyst at the Korean Institute for National Unification in Seoul.
“The North’s statement illustrates Pyongyang’s position that it will respond in proportion to the military exercises of the South, Japan and the United States.”he added.
Still, the North seems to be trying not to “cross the line to provoke an armed conflict”.
Ahn Chan-ila North Korean defector turned analyst at the World Institute for North Korean Studies, told AFP it was “difficult to determine exact capabilities” of Pyongyang’s alleged underwater nuclear weapons system.
“Considering North Korea’s defense science level and the fact that the weapon is still under development, it is not yet at a stage that poses a significant threat.“, he claimed.
In his usual political meeting at the end of the year, Kim threatened with a nuclear attack against the South and called for strengthening his country’s military arsenal in the face of a war that could “burst at any time”.
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On Sunday, North Korea fired a hypersonic solid-fuel missile and days before it deployed live-fire exercises near the tense maritime border with the South.
In response, Seoul ordered its army maneuvers and evacuated some islands near the border.
At the end of the previous year, Kim managed to put the country’s first spy satellite into orbit, for which, according to Seoul, he received help from Russia in exchange for the supply of weapons to Moscow for war in Ukraine.
