On Friday, North Korea claimed to have conducted a test using an underwater drone to simulate a nuclear attack on an enemy seaport. The state-run Korean Central News Agency reported that the drone, named Haeil or "tsunami," was launched on Tuesday from the North's east coast and traveled underwater for over 59 hours, detonating its "test warhead" on Thursday afternoon. The report did not specify the target of the test.
According to the report, the drone was designed to infiltrate enemy waters and create a "super-scale radioactive tsunami" through an underwater explosion to destroy ships and ports. State media released photos of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspecting the torpedo-shaped vehicle in a warehouse and the drone detonating underwater.
There is currently no independent confirmation of the test, and South Korea's military is attempting to verify the report. Testing an underwater attack drone capable of carrying a nuclear warhead would be a significant development for North Korea, which has conducted several weapons tests in recent months, claiming that some of the missiles launched could be equipped with nuclear warheads.
North Korea has claimed to have successfully launched strategic cruise missiles off its east coast, with test warheads detonated mid-air to check their "nuclear explosion control devices and detonators." The country has conducted six underground nuclear tests since 2016, but it remains uncertain whether it has developed the type of nuclear attack capabilities that its state media often claims. North Korea states that it has nuclear warheads that can be mounted on drones, cruise, and short-range missiles, but South Korea has said that it is assessing the North's evolving capabilities, which it says have often been exaggerated.
According to an expert on North Korean weapons at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, "it's hard to determine how much of the North Korean claim we can trust." However, the North's report stated that the drone could be towed by a ship and launched while at sea, potentially extending the range of its nuclear arsenal. North Korea has been attempting for years to build a submarine capable of launching nuclear missiles, but it has yet to deploy one.
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