North Korea Tests Second Underwater Nuclear Drone In Two Weeks: Report

North Korea conducted an underwater nuclear drone test of Haeil-1 earlier this week. However, some experts have expressed doubts over the reports of the deployment of any such weapons.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

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North Korea has tested another underwater nuclear drone in a recent demonstration of its military power and show of strength. This comes just around two weeks after North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles on March 27 in its flurry of weapons tests, said South Korea's military. North Korea conducted a test of the nuclear-capable unmanned underwater weapon Haeil-1 from April 4 to April 7, reported news agency Reuters. It said the drones cruised 1,000 km for about 71 hours and hit the target.

However, some experts have expressed doubts over the reports of the deployment of any such weapons. Although North Korea defended its position of displaying such a weaponry strength. "The test perfectly proved the reliability of the underwater strategic weapon system and its fatal attack ability," the state media KCNA reported on Saturday.

North Korea had fired two short-range ballistic missiles on March 27 in its flurry of weapons tests, said South Korea's military. The launch was conducted after reports surfaced that Seoul and Washington were involved in a joint amphibious landing exercise. This took place just days after the completion of their largest joint military drills in over five years.

South Korea considers all these training sessions and exercises to fall under the category of invasion. The country has often warned that it would respond with an overwhelming force to all these threats, reported news agency AFP.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) of South Korea said their military detected two short-range ballistic missiles fired from the area nearby Junghwa in North Hwanghae province from 07:47 am (2247 GMT) towards the East Sea. They were also quoted by AFP as saying, "Our military has strengthened surveillance and vigilance against additional launches while maintaining a full readiness posture through close cooperation between South Korea and the United States."

Earlier, the Japanese defence ministry had verified the launch that was conducted by North Korea. The Japanese media had said both missiles most probably flew on an irregular path before falling outside of Japan's exclusive economic zone.