North confirms test-firing of ‘important weapon’ days before APEC meeting

North Korea said on October 23 that it test-fired what it called “an important weapon system,” apparently referring to a hypersonic missile launched a day earlier.

The North did not specify the exact model or technical details of the weapon. However, the use of the term “hypersonic projectile” suggests it may have been the Hwasong-11Ma, a short-range ballistic missile (SRBM) in the KN-23 series, equipped with a hypersonic glide vehicle warhead similar to the one showcased at a military parade earlier this month.

The launch was conducted under the direction of the Missile General Bureau as part of “an important weapon system,” according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The state media said that “two hypersonic projectiles launched from Ryokpo District, Pyongyang Municipality, toward the northeast direction hit the target point on the tableland of Kwesang Peak in Orang County, North Hamgyong Province.”

Senior officials who attended included Pak Jong-chon, secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), and Kim Jong-sik, first vice department director of the WPK Central Committee, and Jang Chang Ha, general director of the Missile Administration.

There was no mention of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s attendance.

The agency described the test as part of the country’s “defense development plan to enhance the sustainability and effectiveness of strategic deterrence against potential adversaries.”

Pak was quoted as saying that the country’s “new cutting-edge weapon system is clear proof of steadily upgrading self-defensive technical capabilities” and “evidently aimed to continue to bolster up the war deterrent and their purpose is to strengthen self-defense.”

However, North Korea’s domestic media — including the Rodong Sinmun, the ruling party’s newspaper, and Korean Central Television — made no mention of the launch, suggesting the event was not publicized internally.

The missile test came just days before the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting, marking the regime’s first ballistic missile provocation in about five months.

It was the first such launch since May 8, when Pyongyang fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles, including a Hwasong-11 variant — and the first since the inauguration of the Lee Jae Myung administration in South Korea.

With North Korea expected to feature prominently in discussions at upcoming bilateral summits, including those between Korea and the United States and Korea and China, analysts say the latest test appears intended to underscore Pyongyang’s presence on the international stage.

BY HAN YOUNG-HYE [kim.minyoung5@joongang.co.kr]