The DPRK has test-fired new ballistic missiles equipped with super-large warheads and modified cruise missiles, for the third time in a week as part of Pyongyang’s display of military power in the restive Korean Peninsula.

The official Korean Central News Agency KCNA said on Wednesday that the tests involved new tactical Hwasongpho-11-Da-4.5 missiles, a series of short-range ballistic missiles mounted with 4.5-ton super-large conventional warheads.

DPRK's military also tested a strategic cruise missile that has been upgraded for combat use, KCNA added.

The agency said the tests came following DPRK leader Kim Jong Un’s call for the use of stronger conventional weapons and nuclear capabilities to improve the country’s arms capabilities required for dealing with grave threats posed by outside forces.

KCNA quoted Kim, who oversaw the tests, as saying, "The need to continue to bolster up the nuclear force and have the strongest military technical capability and overwhelming offensive capability in the field of conventional weapons too.”

DPRK's state media reported the tests of missiles with the same name in July and released on Thursday photographs of a projectile striking a target in a hilly area.

In reaction to the latest tests, South Korea's military said two ballistic missiles landed in a mountainous area in DPRK's northeast.

DPRK had a day earlier fired a salvo of short-range ballistic missiles, with Japan also confirming the launch.

Last Thursday, Pyongyang fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles into waters east of the Korean peninsula, the first major weapons test by the nuclear-armed country since early July.

Why it matters

In recent months, the United States has ramped up its deployment of long-range bombers, submarines, and aircraft carrier strike groups to conduct joint training exercises with South Korean and Japanese forces.

The DPRK has condemned these military drills by South Korea and the US, including a significant exercise held this summer, labeling them as preparations for war on the Korean Peninsula.

Pyongyang asserted that these war games are designed to provoke a hostile response from them, thereby justifying the presence of additional foreign military forces amid Pyongyang's threats of nuclear conflict against Washington and Seoul.

The DPRK leader has repeatedly cautioned Washington's regional allies about strengthening military ties with the US, warning that this could lead to war "breaking out at any time."

Washington, Seoul, and Tokyo recently held their first-ever joint military exercises following the trilateral security pact signed by US President Joe Biden and his Japanese and South Korean counterparts at Camp David on August 18, 2023.

China, Russia, and DPRK have all expressed concerns over the US efforts to militarize the Asia-Pacific region through a growing network of security agreements.

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