North Korea Says It Carried Out Cruise Missile Test Ahead of Trump’s Visit to South Korea

North Korea announced Tuesday that it had test-fired sea-to-surface cruise missiles ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s trip to South Korea.

The China-backed U.S. adversary said the missile was fired into its western waters. North Korea’s state-controlled Korean Central News Agency described the test as a success, saying that the weapons would contribute to expanding the operational sphere of the regime’s nuclear-armed military.

The missile test was announced after Trump had already arrived in the region for a series of meetings with top U.S. allies in the region.

North Korea announced the test hours before Trump was due to leave Japan for a summit with South Korean officials.

Trump’s schedule has the president arriving for a summit in Gyeongju, South Korea—where the U.S. allied nation is hosting this year’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meetings. Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will both be in attendance.

Trump is also scheduled to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a summit in South Korea.

North Korea’s latest launches come after the U.S. adversary conducted short-range ballistic missile tests last week, which North Korea said involved new hypersonic technology.

In a statement released following the North Korean test, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the military detected the missile-related activity in North Korea and had prepared for the Tuesday test launch.

The cruise missiles were launched around 3:00 p.m. local time in the waters west of North Korea, the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff said, but details of the test are still undergoing military analysis.

North Korea, led by Kim Jong Un, has seen a surge in its military capabilities recently after developing a closer relationship with Russia. In exchange for technological aid from Russia, North Korea has sent contingents of its own troops to the front lines of Russia’s war with Ukraine.

North Korea and Kim have increasingly turned their diplomatic focus to Russia, particularly after Kim’s high-stakes nuclear talks with Trump and the U.S. fell apart in 2019.

The most recent test announced by North Korea came after Russia announced a successful test of the Burevestnik nuclear-powered cruise missile, which it has boasted could be able to circumnavigate the globe without being detected.

Trump arrived in Southeast Asia earlier this week, first visiting Malaysia.

During meetings with Malaysian and other regional officials, Trump secured key promises related to crucial rare earth materials and trade imbalances.

On Sunday, Trump announced four trade deals with Malaysia and others.

Trump arrived in Tokyo on Monday for meetings with Japanese officials, including a meeting with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and a ceremonial meeting with Emperor Naruhito.

Trump departed Tokyo for South Korea  around 8:00 p.m. ET on Tuesday, with the summit set to begin around 9:40 p.m.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated U.S. President Donald Trump’s whereabouts when North Korea announced its cruise missile test. The Epoch Times regrets the error.