SEOUL, Oct. 23 (UPI) — North Korea successfully tested a “new cutting-edge weapons system” involving hypersonic missiles, state-run media reported Thursday, amid heightened regional tensions ahead of the upcoming Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea.
Two hypersonic projectiles were launched in a northeast direction from the Pyongyang area and hit targets on a plateau of Kwesang Peak in Orang County, North Kamgyong Province, the official Korean Central News Agency reported.
“The new weapon system was tested as part of the defense capability development program to enhance the sustainability and effectiveness of strategic deterrence against potential enemies,” KCNA said.
The test, held Wednesday, was overseen by a delegation of officials led by Pak Jong Chon, secretary of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was not present at the test.
“The new cutting-edge weapon system is a clear proof of steadily upgrading self-defensive technical capabilities of the DPRK,” Pak said, according to KCNA.
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.
Seoul’s military on Wednesday said that it detected the launch of several short-range ballistic missiles, which flew for roughly 217 miles before falling on land.
U.S. Forces Korea denounced the North’s launches and its “relentless pursuit of long-range missile capabilities,” acts that are prohibited by U.N. Security Council resolutions.
“The United States condemns these unlawful and destabilizing actions, and we call on the DPRK to refrain from further acts in violation of the UNSCR,” USFK said in a statement.
The launch was North Korea’s fifth of the year, and the first since South Korean President Lee Jae Myung took office in June. Lee has made efforts to improve relations between the two Koreas, with conciliatory gestures such as removing propaganda loudspeakers from border areas.
The missile test comes ahead of South Korea’s hosting of the APEC summit in Gyeongju on Oct. 30-Nov. 1. U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to visit Gyeongju before the official summit for bilateral meetings with leaders including Chinese President Xi Jinping and South Korea’s Lee.
Analysts had speculated that the North may conduct a provocation ahead of the event as Pyongyang continues its push to be recognized as a nuclear-armed state.
The regime unveiled its latest intercontinental ballistic missile, the Hwasong-20, at a massive military parade earlier this month. The ICBM, which North Korean state media called the regime’s “most powerful nuclear strategic weapon,” is a solid-fuel missile believed capable of reaching the continental United States.
Hypersonic weapons, meanwhile, travel at least five times the speed of sound and are maneuverable mid-flight, making them a challenge for missile detection and interception systems.
