North Korea Claims Missile Gains in Threat to U.S. Allies
- Pyongyang test fires ‘strategic weapon of great significance’
- Kim Jong Un seeks to bolster deterrence against allied attack
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North Korea said it successfully test-fired a new model of long-range cruise missile this weekend, in the latest sign the regime is trying to bolster its capability for nuclear strikes against Japan and South Korea.
The missiles flew in “pattern-8 flight orbits” for more than two hours on Saturday and Sunday, covering some 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) over land and waters off North Korea before hitting targets, the official Korea Central News Agency said Monday. That range would be sufficient to strike most of Japan, and the KCNA report called the new missile a “strategic weapon of great significance.”