North Korea Test-Fires Submarine-Launched Cruise Missiles in East Sea
North Korean state media reported that two types of strategic cruise missiles were fired from a submarine on 14 October 2026. South Korean monitors tracked the launches. The test is the first publicly reported submarine-launched cruise missile firing since January 2024.
East Sea / Seoul1 min read
Last updated
North Korea test-fired two types of submarine-launched strategic cruise missiles in the East Sea on 14 October 2026, the Korean Central News Agency reported the following day.
KCNA said the launches examined the reliability of war deterrents and improved the navy’s ability to carry out strategic missions. Senior military officers observed the tests. The agency stated that the firings produced no adverse impact on the security of neighbouring countries.
One of the missiles was identified as a Pulhwasal-3-31, a type previously tested from land. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed tracking the launches and said one appeared to come from a vertical launch tube and the other from a torpedo tube.
Platform and context
Analysts linked the test to the Hero Kim Kun Ok, the 3,000-ton-class vessel North Korea unveiled in September 2023 and described as a tactical nuclear attack submarine. Kim Jong-un attended the launch ceremony that year and said arming the navy with nuclear weapons could not be delayed further.
The 14 October firing is the first publicly reported submarine-launched cruise missile test since 28 January 2024, when the North said it fired Pulhwasal-3-31 missiles from the smaller 8.24 Yongung submarine. Those earlier missiles flew for more than two hours each.
North Korea has conducted a series of missile tests in October. The submarine-launched cruise missile event follows earlier ballistic missile launches into the same waters. South Korean and U.S. forces routinely monitor such activity; U.S. Forces Korea had not issued an immediate public comment by the time of the initial reports.
The tests form part of Pyongyang’s ongoing effort to expand sea-based delivery options for its missile inventory. Cruise missiles offer lower-altitude flight profiles that can complicate detection compared with ballistic trajectories, though submarine launch itself adds technical and operational demands.
KCNA released photographs of one of the missiles in flight. Independent verification of range, accuracy or warhead configuration remains limited to the statements issued by the two sides.
