North Korea announced that it had tested two types of submarine-launched cruise missiles, continuing its efforts to expand its nuclear-capable arsenal as diplomatic relations with the United States and South Korea remain frozen.
According to North Korea’s official news agency, KCNA, the launches took place Wednesday in waters off the country's eastern coast. The missiles were described as strategic weapons, a designation suggesting they are intended to carry nuclear warheads.
The report did not clarify whether the missiles were fired from an operational submarine or an underwater testing platform.
Pyongyang said the exercises were designed to evaluate the operational readiness of its underwater weapons systems, strengthen the navy's capacity to conduct strategic missions and demonstrate the dependability of its nuclear deterrent.
South Korea's military did not immediately issue a response to the announcement, according to The Associated Press.
The latest tests follow several other weapons demonstrations in recent weeks, including launches of different hypersonic missile systems on September 20 and October 3.
North Korea said those exercises were intended to advance weapons capable of penetrating or overwhelming missile defense systems operated by South Korea and Japan.
Pyongyang has spent years developing ballistic and cruise missiles capable of being launched from underwater platforms. More recently, it has claimed progress toward constructing a nuclear-powered submarine intended to carry nuclear-capable weapons.
The project reflects North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's increasing emphasis on strengthening the country's naval forces after approximately a decade of concentrating on the expansion of its ballistic missile capabilities.
The weapons tests come against the backdrop of a prolonged diplomatic deadlock.
Kim has effectively ended cooperation and dialogue with South Korea, which he has designated a permanent enemy. Nuclear negotiations with Washington have also remained stalled for years.
Pyongyang has so far rejected efforts by US President Donald Trump to restart negotiations following the collapse of their previous diplomatic initiative in 2019.
Despite the lack of progress, Trump suggested Monday that another meeting with Kim could take place during his planned trip to Asia next month.
Speaking with reporters while traveling to Joint Base Andrews ahead of a campaign event in Youngstown, Ohio, the president was asked whether he intended to meet the North Korean leader.
“I may. I may. That would be exciting, but I get along with him," Trump replied.
Trump is expected to visit the Philippines after the November 2026 midterm elections to participate in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit.
No meeting with Kim has been announced, although the president has repeatedly indicated that he would welcome renewed direct negotiations.
In August, Trump expressed confidence that he would meet Kim before the end of the year.
Asked whether another encounter was likely, he responded, “Yeah, I will."
However, when questioned about whether the two leaders had resumed exchanging letters, Trump declined to provide details.
“I can’t tell you that," he said.
During Trump's first term, he and Kim held three meetings in an unprecedented diplomatic effort to address North Korea's nuclear weapons program.
Their first summit took place in Singapore in 2018, followed by a second meeting in Vietnam in 2019.
Later that year, Trump became the first sitting US president to enter North Korea when he crossed the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas.
Despite the historic encounters, the negotiations failed to produce a binding agreement restricting or dismantling Pyongyang's nuclear arsenal.
In September 2025, Kim referred positively to his past interactions with Trump, saying he had "good memories" of the American president.
At the same time, he reaffirmed that North Korea would not abandon its nuclear capabilities, declaring that the country would "never lay down our nuclear weapons."