North Korea tests nuclear-capable underwater drone amid heightened military tensions

The North Korean military criticized the joint exercise conducted by South Korean, United States, and Japanese forces from Monday to Wednesday.

In a statement published by KCNA, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Defense rebuked the three countries for posing a "serious threat to North Korea's security" and warned of "catastrophic consequences" resulting from what they deemed as "reckless confrontational hysteria".

The Korean Central News Agency did not disclose further details, including the weapon's specifications and the test date.

Exercises involving the American nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, which Pyongyang interpreted as preparation for an invasion of North Korea, were a response to the medium-range ballistic missile fired by Kim Jong Un's regime towards the Sea of Japan on Sunday.

North Korea announced its first test of the Haeil-1 underwater combat drone in March of the previous year. The regime boasted about this "secret weapon," claiming it is undetectable by radars and can generate a "radioactive tsunami." In April, Pyongyang conducted a test of the Haeil-2 drone.

At a party meeting at the end of the year, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un urged for increased military readiness to counteract what he termed "unprecedented" acts of confrontation initiated by the US. Kim also defined inter-Korean relations as relations between "two enemy states".