'North Korea test-fires new long-range cruise missiles'

The launched long-range cruise missiles traveled for 7,580 seconds along oval and pattern-8 flight orbits in the air above the territorial land and waters of North Korea and hit targets 1,500 km away, Xinhua news agency cited the KCNA report as saying.

The development of this weapon system "holds strategic significance of possessing another effective deterrence means for more reliably guaranteeing the security of our state and strongly containing the military maneuvers of the hostile forces against North Korea", the state media noted.

The development of the long-range cruise missile "has been pushed forward according to the scientific and reliable weapon system development process for the past two years" and detailed tests of missile parts, scores of engine ground thrust tests, various flight tests, control and guidance tests, warhead power tests, etc. were conducted with success, according to the report.

"In all, the efficiency and practicality of the weapon system operation was confirmed to be excellent," it said.

Pak Jong Chon, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, watched the test-launches with some leading officials and scientists in the field of the national defence science.

Pak stressed the need for the field of the national defence science to go all out to increase the defence capabilities, the war deterrence of the country and keep making achievements in meeting the grand and long-term targets of securing war deterrence, the report said.