South Korea’s military on Monday (October 12, 2026) said North Korea fired at least one projectile toward its eastern waters, adding to a recent streak in weapons demonstrations.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff did not immediately say whether the weapon was ballistic or how far it flew. The office of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said the country also detected the launch and described the weapon as a suspected ballistic missile.

The launch came days after South Korea on Friday (October 9) flight-tested its first domestically developed hypersonic weapon, designed to fly at least five times the speed of sound and evade missile defence systems, which President Lee Jae Myung described as an important step in strengthening the South’s conventional defence capabilities.

While maintaining a hard line toward Seoul, North Korea has been ramping up weapons testing as it seeks to expand its arsenal of nuclear-capable systems, including an Oct. 3 test of what the North described as a hypersonic intermediate-range missile designed to evade missile defences in South Korea and Japan.

North Korea has also conducted other missile tests and live-fire drills and commissioned a new warship as leader Kim Jong Un continues to flaunt his nuclear weapons program while rejecting U.S. and South Korean offers to resume long-stalled diplomacy.

Tensions were further worsened after three South Korean soldiers were injured in land mine explosions last month near the heavily armed inter-Korean border. The South’s military and the U.S.-led United Nations Command concluded the blasts were caused by devices planted by North Korea, which has denied responsibility and ridiculed the South’s demands for an apology.

North Korea said on Monday (September 14, 2026) it conducted a joint live-fire drill involving missiles, artillery and drones that it claimed demonstrated “the huge destructive power of concentration fire.” The official Korean Central News Agency said Saturday’s (September 12) drill was meant to get familiar with the procedure for the operation of the integrated firepower control system. South Korea’s military earlier said it detected short-range ballistic missile launches from North Korea’s eastern coastal Wonsan area on Saturday (September 12) morning.

After observing the drill, Marshal Pak Jong Chon said the drill would “improve the level of specialisation to bring down the enemy’s armed forces organisationally and structurally once an order is issued.” He added the weapons systems mobilised demonstrated “the huge destructive power of concentration fire,” according to KCNA.

It is extremely difficult to independently verify North Korean claims on its weapons tests. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said several missiles fired Saturday flew about 250 kilometres each in a direction toward North Korea’s eastern waters. The flight distances signal the weapons are designed to strike targets in South Korea.

The firing drill marked North Korea’s first public ballistic missile launches in about three weeks.

Last month, U.S. President Donald Trump scaled back a major bilateral military drill with South Korea, citing what he called a good relationship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. That is an apparent effort to revive diplomacy between them, but North Korea rebuffed Mr. Trump’s overture saying just shortening the drill will not change its “provocative, aggressive nature.” Buoyed by his advancing nuclear arsenal and deepened ties with Russia and China, experts say Mr. Kim likely thinks he has greater leverage in possible diplomacy with the U.S. than when he first met Mr. Trump in 2018-19.

Mr. Kim said earlier this year that he could return to talks if the U.S. drops its “hostile policy” against his country and respects what he calls the North’s status as a nuclear state.

North Korea’s Defence Minister has been dismissed as part of a reshuffle of the country’s military leadership, state media reported on Sunday (August 30, 2026).

The “structural reorganization plans” were decided during a meeting on Saturday (August 29) led by Kim Jong Un, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

No Kwang Chol was not only dismissed as Defence Minister but also demoted in the ruling party leadership to “first vice-director of the Munitions Industry Department,” KCNA said.

Kim Song Gi, director of the General Political Bureau of the Korean People’s Army, was named as the new Defence Minister.

Another senior official, Defence Advisor Pak Jong Chon, was given the position of vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission and named to the ruling party’s Political Bureau.

Several other promotions were also announced.

In a separate report, KCNA said Mr. Kim had lauded scientists, researchers and officials at a ceremony on Saturday for their advances in defence technology, giving them top national honours.

The honorees greatly contributed to “resolving scientific and technological problems of epochal significance in developing new combat weapon systems”, KCNA said, without specifying the type of system.

A photo released by KCNA shows Mr. Kim pinning a medal on a recipient.

The nuclear-armed state’s weapons research centre “has recently developed exclusive technologies, to be regarded as an event in strengthening the capability for fighting a war”, it added without giving details.

With such technologies, it has shown “the course of unique development of the country’s military and technological capabilities”, it said.

In late June, Mr. Kim oversaw tests of a new extended-range multiple rocket launcher and artillery.

Trilateral drills

The leadership shuffle comes shortly after joint annual drills between South Korea and the United States wrapped up.

The drills, which are regularly denounced by Pyongyang as preparations for an invasion, were closely watched this year after U.S. President Donald Trump ordered them to be cut short.

Mr. Trump criticised the drills as provocative towards the North and bashed Seoul for not supporting his war against Iran.

The U.S. President also praised North Korean leader Mr. Kim, whom he met twice during his first term in office, as he eyes a new meeting, potentially this year.

Despite Mr. Trump’s overtures, North Korea has shown little sign of reciprocating, firing missiles and condemning the scaled-down drills.

Pyongyang has also slammed Washington’s approval of arms sales to South Korea and plans to fund programmes documenting human rights abuses in the North.

Military cooperation among Washington and its regional allies is meanwhile set to continue, with South Korea, the United States and Japan due to hold trilateral joint exercises — called Freedom Edge — from September 7 to 11 in international waters east and south of South Korea’s Jeju Island.

“This exercise is a defensive drill conducted annually by the three countries to respond to North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats and safeguard peace and stability in the region,” Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said on Friday (August 28).

​South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said ‌on Sunday that warning shots ​had been fired when North ⁠Korean soldiers violated the military demarcation line between the countries, prompting them to ‌return.

The Yonhap news agency reported earlier on Sunday that warning ‌shots had been fired ‌last ⁠week, citing an unnamed source.

“Recently, ⁠on the Eastern Front, North Korean forces crossed the military demarcation line, prompting our ​military to fire warning ‌shots according to operational procedures,” a JCS statement said without giving the date of the incident.

“Our ‌military is closely monitoring North ​Korean movements while maintaining a firm military readiness posture.”

Yonhap said ⁠the incident was the first reported violation of the military demarcation line ‌by North Korea this year and that the soldiers were likely to have been patrolling the area when they crossed the MDL.

The North Korean embassy in Singapore ‌did not respond immediately to a request ​for comment.

North Korean troops violated the line 17 times ⁠last year, Yonhap said.

The two Koreas are ⁠technically at war after their 1950-53 war ended in an ‌armistice rather than a peace treaty.

North Korea on Friday (August 14, 2026) threatened to exercise its right to self-defence in a statement that slammed the upcoming U.S.-South Korean military drills as a war rehearsal that would be more provocative than last year.

The U.S. and South Korean militaries are to start their annual large-scale drills on Monday (August 17, 2026) and have described the scope of this year’s training as similar to past years.

The allies have said the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises are meant to strengthen their readiness against North Korean threats and reiterated that they are defensive in nature.

The North Korean warning signals that the country could conduct more weapons tests in the coming days after its neighbours detected two ballistic missile launches off North Korea’s east coast in the past week.

North Korea hasn’t commented on the launches, but outside experts assess they were likely meant to protest the U.S.-South Korean drills or upgrade weapons systems.

In a statement carried by state media on Friday (August 14, 2026), North Korea’s Foreign Ministry called the U.S.-South Korean training “a rehearsal for an aggressive war” that is triggering a different level of instability in the region.

“It is our consistent principle of ensuring security to respond to a new level of a threat with a new level of a deterrent,” the statement said. North Korea “will more clearly express its stance on the enemies to cope with any threats and challenges through the responsible and decisive exercise of the right to legitimate self-defence.” North Korea also said the drills would be of a “more serious provocative nature and dangerousness than last year” and involve all the military assets and war-fighting modes of the US and South Korea, a claim that those countries haven’t said.

Analysts say North Korea has often used its adversaries’ military drills as a pretext to ramp up weapons testing activities to expand its nuclear and missile arsenals and promote public support of leader Kim Jong Un.

Mr. Kim has ignored the U.S. and South Korea’s offers to resume diplomacy and has focussed on taking steps to bolster his nuclear arsenal since his summitry with U.S. President Donald Trump broke down in 2019.

Experts say Mr. Kim will likely eventually aim to use his advancing nuclear program to win greater U.S. concessions such as extensive sanctions relief.

Mr. Kim has increased his diplomatic engagement with Russia in recent years. North Korea has been supplying troops and ammunition to Russia to support its war against Ukraine in return for economic and military assistance. Mr. Kim has also recently pushed to deepen ties with China, North Korea’s biggest trading partner.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised tests of a nuclear-capable cruise missile and other weapons aboard a new 5,000-ton destroyer, the Kang Kon, repaired after being damaged in a failed launch ceremony last year, state media said Sunday (July 5, 2026), in the latest military display marking Mr. Kim’s push to build a nuclear-armed Navy.

The official Korean Central News Agency said Friday’s (July 3, 2026) event included test-firings of a strategic cruise missile and of the Kang Kon’s main gun and automatic cannons, as well as trials of its electronic warfare systems and assessments of its target-detection and information-processing capabilities.

After observing the tests from shore, Mr. Kim ordered officials to complete the destroyer’s trials and place the vessel in active duty within two months, the state news agency said.

The tests came after North Korea in late June commissioned its first 5,000-ton destroyer, the Choe Hyon, a milestone Mr. Kim marked with a lavish ceremony where he declared that the nuclear armament of his Navy was proceeding as planned.

After years of prioritizing ballistic missile development, Mr. Kim has increasingly turned his focus to naval capabilities, including the construction of a nuclear-powered submarine. While outlining his five-year military goals at February’s Workers’ Party congress, Mr. Kim also called for intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of underwater launches.

North Korea first unveiled the Choe Hyon in April 2025, which Mr. Kim portrayed as a major step toward expanding his military’s operational reach and preemptive strike capabilities. KCNA has said the warship is equipped with a range of systems, including anti-aircraft and anti-ship weapons as well as nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles.

South Korean officials and experts say the vessel was likely built with Russian assistance amid deepening military ties between the countries, but some analysts have questioned how effective the vessel would be in active service.

The Kang Kon was unveiled a month after the Choe Hyon in May 2025, but it was damaged during a botched launch at the northern port of Chongjin, prompting a furious response from Mr. Kim. The country later said the ship was relaunched in June after repairs, but outside experts have questioned whether it’s genuinely ready for active duty.

Mr. Kim has also called for building two new 5,000-ton warships annually over the next five years, as well as developing a larger 10,000-ton destroyer.

North ​Korea should build two warships as large as ‌its 5,000-metric-ton Choe Hyon vessel ​every year in the next five ⁠years, leader Kim Jong Un said at a commissioning ceremony of a destroyer on ‌Tuesday(June 23, 2026), according to state media KCNA.

Mr. Kim attended the ceremony held at ‌the Nampho port in North Korea ‌to ⁠celebrate the deployment of the ⁠new multipurpose destroyer Choe Hyon, KCNA reported.

The destroyer successfully completed military operational tests over the past ​14 months, KCNA ‌added.

The country plans to deploy another 5,000-ton destroyer named Kang Kon soon along with 10,000-ton strategic warships, Mr. Kim said, ‌according to the report.

Kang Kon ​was repaired last year after partially capsizing during a launch ceremony.

The ⁠Navy had been the weakest part of North Korea’s military forces, Mr. Kim said, ‌adding that its capabilities would now be “something incredible beyond imagination.”

“Building a modernised naval base has emerged as a desperate and essential task,” Mr. Kim said.

He said officials of the ruling ‌Workers’ Party’s Central Committee discussed plans to build ​new naval bases at a meeting on Monday (June 22, 2026).

The most important change ⁠for the navy would be a shift ⁠in its status, role and scope of operations, Mr. Kim said, without elaborating.

The ‌Navy’s nuclearisation is “advancing along its own course,” contributing to the country’s nuclear ​deterrence, he said. 

North Korean leader Kim ​Jong Un said exercising the country’s position as a nuclear ‌state is the only way to cope with ​an unpredictable and complicated global security situation, ⁠KCNA state news agency reported on Tuesday (June 23, 2026).

“Unimaginable, astonishing incidents and events” are occurring because of the “gangster-like” greed of hegemonic forces, ‌making confrontations around the world more violent, Mr. Kim said, blaming the U.S. for worsening ‌bloodshed in Europe and the West Asia.

Mr. Kim spoke ‌at ⁠a Central Committee meeting of the ⁠ruling Workers’ Party, which began on Saturday and closed on Monday, KCNA said.

Mr. Kim accused the U.S. and South Korea of making ​the security situation on the ‌Korean Peninsula more dangerous by steadily upgrading their combined nuclear posture, the only purpose of which, he said, is to attack North Korea.

“To steadily expand ‌and strengthen the nuclear forces … and to thoroughly ​exercise the position of a nuclear weapons state is the most correct and unique ⁠way to actively and confidently cope with the unpredictable international military and political situation getting complicated in multiple ‌ways,” KCNA said.

KCNA did not elaborate on specific actions regarding the country’s nuclear arsenal that might be taken.

Mr. Kim also ordered the buildup of conventional weapons and an acceleration of the construction of a 10,000-ton strategic guided missile cruiser, KCNA said.

North Korea has ‌defied a slew of sanctions imposed by both the United ​Nations and the U.S. between 2006 and 2017 banning Pyongyang from developing nuclear weapons and ⁠ballistic missiles to deliver them. Its stance has alarmed ⁠regional powers.

It has declared itself a nuclear state and has said nothing would convince it ‌to abandon its atomic weapons, despite years of diplomatic efforts by the U.S., China and South ​Korea.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un observed sea trials of a new warship repaired after a failed launch last year and vowed to accelerate efforts to build a nuclear-armed navy, state media said on Saturday (June 6, 2026), showcasing his expanding military capabilities ahead of a visit by Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

North Korea’s official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said Kim visited the 5,000-tonne destroyer Kang Kon on Thursday (June 4, 2026) as it underwent capability tests.

Photos released by the agency showed him accompanied by his increasingly prominent teenage daughter, believed to be named Kim Ju Ae, whom South Korean officials say may be being groomed as his successor.

Kim Jong Un called for “rapidly developing” naval forces capable of playing a larger role in the country’s nuclear deterrent and dealing a “deadly blow at the enemy any moment under the water or on the water,” KCNA said.

He said the navy was a key focus of a new five-year defence plan approved at a ruling party congress earlier this year, which he said includes building larger 10,000-tonne-class destroyers and developing unspecified “underwater secret weapons.” The agency did not report any direct remarks by Kim about Washington or Seoul amid persistent tensions over his nuclear ambitions and a prolonged freeze in diplomacy.

The report came a day after North Korean and Chinese state media confirmed that Mr. Xi would visit North Korea on Monday (June 8, 2026), the latest sign of Beijing’s efforts to reinforce ties with its nuclear-armed neighbour.

In recent years, Mr. Kim has prioritised relations with Russia, notably by sending troops and military equipment to support Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

Mr. Xi’s trip was announced a day after North Korea unveiled what South Korea’s military assessed as a new uranium-enrichment facility for producing nuclear bomb fuel.

During a visit to the unspecified site, Mr. Kim pledged to expand the country’s nuclear forces “at an exponential rate”, a move that experts say reflects his desire to cement North Korea’s status as a nuclear weapons state ahead of Mr. Xi’s visit.

Kang Kon is the second of two destroyers North Korea unveiled last year, following the Choe Hyon, whose development Kim hailed as a major step toward expanding the operational range and preemptive strike capabilities of his nuclear-armed military.

State media said the ships are designed to carry a range of weapons systems, including anti-aircraft and anti-ship weapons as well as nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles, though some experts have questioned their effectiveness in active duty.

Kang Kon was damaged during a botched launching ceremony in May last year at the northeastern port of Chongjin, triggering a furious reaction from Kim, who called the failure “criminal.”

North Korea said Kang Kon was relaunched in June after repair, but outside experts have questioned whether the ship is fully operational. Kim has called for building two more 5,000-tonne-class destroyers.

North Korea ⁠fired an unidentified projectile off the country’s west coast on ‌Tuesday (May 26, 2026), South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff ‌said in a ‌statement.

If ⁠confirmed as a missile ⁠launch, it would be the first since April 19, when ​North Korea ‌test-fired several short-range ballistic missiles, which it said were equipped with cluster bombs.

In early ‌April, Pyongyang also ​said it tested a new cluster-bomb warhead on ⁠a ballistic missile and an electromagnetic weapon, in a ‌move that analysts said was part of efforts to showcase the North’s capacity to fight a modern war.

Also Read | North Korea fires 10 ballistic missiles during U.S.-South Korea military drills

North Korean ‌leader Kim Jong Un said ​in March that his country’s status as a ⁠nuclear-armed state was irreversible ⁠and that expanding a “self-defensive nuclear deterrent” was essential to ‌national security.