- Test. North Korea confirmed on October 15 that it test-fired two types of submarine-launched strategic cruise missiles on October 14, marking what analysts describe as the first documented use of a converted missile submarine in a live launch exercise.
- Pattern. One of the missiles, the Pulhwasal-3-31, was also test-fired from land the previous week, indicating Pyongyang is validating a dual-launch platform for the same warhead.
- Stakes. A functional submarine-launched cruise missile capability would allow North Korea to strike regional targets from depths that evade standard radar and missile-defence systems, complicating deterrence calculations for South Korea, Japan, and US forces in the Pacific.
What the State Media Said
North Korea’s state media outlet KCNA reported on October 15 that the Navy had conducted tests the previous day into the East Sea, carrying out what it described as a training exercise to check the country’s “underwater combat systems.” Senior military officers observed the launches, KCNA said. The agency added that the tests had “no adverse impact on the security of neighboring countries,” a standard disclaimer that accompanies most North Korean weapons announcements.
The test included the Pulhwasal-3-31, a strategic cruise missile that Pyongyang also test-fired from a land platform in the days prior, according to Al Jazeera’s report. KCNA did not name the second missile type involved in the October 14 exercise. The launches are the latest in a series of North Korean weapons tests in recent weeks; earlier this month, Pyongyang fired multiple ballistic missiles toward waters off its eastern coast, drawing a response from Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff characterising the activity as a “show of force.”
NK News, which monitors North Korean state media closely, noted that photographs released by KCNA suggest a converted missile submarine was deployed for the test, representing the first time such a vessel has been used in a live exercise since its construction was completed roughly three years ago.
Diplomatic Backdrop
The test coincides with renewed, if vague, US overtures toward Pyongyang. Donald Trump has floated the possibility of meeting Kim Jong Un during a planned Asia trip, though no date or agenda has been confirmed. Direct negotiations between Washington and Pyongyang have been frozen since the Hanoi summit collapsed in February 2019, and Pyongyang has historically used missile tests to calibrate pressure before talks.
This month’s submarine test raises the question of whether the launches are a negotiating signal or evidence that North Korea’s underwater deterrent has passed key readiness thresholds regardless of diplomatic conditions. North Korea is not yet believed to operate a fully modern nuclear-armed ballistic missile submarine, but the submarine-launched cruise missile program represents a meaningful step toward that capability. Cruise missiles travel at low altitude, making them harder for existing missile-defence systems to track and intercept compared with the ballistic variants that have dominated Pyongyang’s test calendar in recent years.
The test follows earlier North Korean claims of AI-guided missile evasion technology, a capability that South Korea and the United States have treated with scepticism but are nonetheless monitoring. Seoul conducted its own hypersonic missile test last week.
Regional Reaction
South Korea’s military had not issued a public response to the submarine-launched cruise missile test as of Thursday morning. Seoul’s defence ministry separately confirmed that North Korea has been stepping up training exercises across multiple service branches in recent months, which it attributed partly to the deployment of approximately 10,000 North Korean troops to support Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Japan’s defence ministry said it was analysing the launches but had no immediate public statement on the type of submarine employed.