North Korea lauds test of 'super-large' rocket launcher

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea on Monday lauded its latest test of what it said was a “super-large” multiple rocket launcher.

The system, which was successfully tested, would soon be delivered to the country’s military units, state news agency KCNA reported.

The aim of the test was primarily to check the technological and tactical specifications of the system, KCNA wrote.

On Sunday, North Korea fired what appeared to be two short-range ballistic missiles towards the Sea of Japan, South Korea said.

It was the fourth time this month Pyongyang test-fired missiles, following a three-month pause.

The two projectiles were launched from the city of Wonsan on North Korea’s eastern coast. They flew some 230 kilometers (about 143 miles) at a maximum altitude of around 30 kilometers (about 19 miles), according to Seoul’s military Joint Chiefs of Staff.

Japan’s Kyodo news agency cited Japanese officials as saying the missiles flew some 250 kilometers before falling into the sea.

The rogue nuclear nation is banned from testing ballistic missiles by UN resolutions, and has been slapped with tough international sanctions to deter it from continuing to develop rockets that could be equipped with nuclear warheads.

Global concerns about North Korea intensified late in 2019 after Pyongyang imposed a year-end deadline for the United States to offer sanctions relief and threatened to send a “Christmas gift,” widely interpreted to mean a weapons test, if demands were not met.

The country’s leader, Kim Jong Un, said the world would see a “new strategic weapon” from the country in the near future, in a message on Jan. 1.

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