North Korea test-fires long-range missiles, officials say

The missiles allegedly hit a target 1,500 kilometers away.

ByChristine Theodorou and Ivan Pereira
September 12, 2021, 5:35 PM

North Korean officials announced they test-fired long-range missiles this weekend.

The "long-range cruise missiles" were launched on Saturday and Sunday and allegedly hit a target 1,500 kilometers away, officials said on North Korea's state-run media.

The missiles flew for over two hours, according to the report.

The Academy of National Defense Science conducts long-range cruise missile tests in North Korea, in undated, unverified photos supplied by North Korea's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Sept. 13, 2021.
KCNA via Reuters

The officials claimed the test was successful, and said the missile is "a strategic weapon of great significance," to North Korea's defense plans.

Although the report said several top North Korean leaders and scientists were in attendance for the launches, there was no mention of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un being present.

PHOTO: People watch a TV screen showing a file image of a North Korean missile in a military parade during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Aug. 30, 2021.
People watch a TV screen showing a file image of a North Korean missile in a military parade during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, Aug. 30, 2021. North Korea appears to have restarted the operation of its main nuclear reactor used to produce weapons fuels, the U.N. atomic agency said, as the North openly threatens to enlarge its nuclear arsenal amid long-dormant nuclear diplomacy with the United States. Korean letters read: "The reactor produces plutonium." (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
Ahn Young-joon/AP

South Korean officials have not yet commented on the test launch.

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