• The tests were conducted off the east coast.
• South Korea labeled the tests as a ‘provocation’, threatening peace on the Korean Peninsula.
• The North has previously asserted tests of its ‘Haeil-5-23’ system.

In response to drills conducted by the US, South Korea, and Japan this week, North Korea claims to have tested its ‘underwater nuclear weapons system.’ State media reported that the underwater drone, purportedly capable of carrying a nuclear weapon, underwent testing off the east coast.

There is no additional evidence verifying the tests, and earlier, Seoul had dismissed the North’s descriptions of the drones’ capabilities as exaggerated. South Korea labeled the reported tests as a ‘provocation.

It “threatens peace on [the] Korean Peninsula and the world,” South Korea’s defense ministry said, adding: “If North Korea directly provokes us, we will respond overwhelmingly following the principle of immediate, strong, and terminal action.”

The North has previously asserted tests of its ‘Haeil-5-23’ system, but the latest incident occurred as the North has heightened military actions in recent weeks.

On Sunday, it declared the deployment of a new solid-fueled intermediate-range ballistic missile, following live-fire drills at the maritime border with South Korea in the first week of January.

Pyongyang leader Kim Jong Un has taken an increasingly aggressive stance in policy direction and rhetoric, terminating several peace-keeping agreements in recent months.

On Friday, North Korea reported that it had been provoked by joint drills conducted by Washington, Seoul, and Tokyo to carry out a test of its underwater weapons, according to a state agency KCNA report.

It accused the exercises of ‘further destabilizing the regional situation’ and threatening the North’s security.

The US, South Korea, and Japan assert that they have conducted more exercises in the past year as a deterrence response to the increasing frequency of North Korea’s military actions, violating UN sanctions. However, Mr. Kim has consistently stated that his regime is building up its military arsenal in preparation for a war that could ‘break out at any time’ on the peninsula.

Over the New Year period, he indicated fundamental policy shifts in his regime’s stance toward South Korea. Earlier this week, he declared the former bedrock goal of reunification with South Korea was over, designating the South as the ‘principal enemy.’

The rhetoric follows several claimed advances in his country’s military and nuclear capabilities, including in its underwater operations. Since March 2023, it has also claimed tests of its Haeil system – unmanned, underwater nuclear-armed drones. Haeil means ‘tsunami’ in Korean.

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