North Korea's Choe Hyon destroyer launched strategic cruise missiles and anti-ship missiles on 12/4 during an operational effectiveness test phase. Leader Kim Jong-un, along with defense officials and naval commanders, supervised the operation, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported today.

During the test, the Choe Hyon destroyer fired two strategic cruise missiles and three anti-ship missiles. This exercise aimed to verify the integrated weapon control system, confirm the accuracy and target hit rate of the anti-jamming guidance system on the projectiles, and familiarize the crew with operations.

The Choe Hyon destroyer launches a missile during the 12/4 test. Photo: KCNA

According to KCNA, the strategic cruise and anti-ship missile series took 132 minutes and 33 minutes, respectively, to strike targets in the waters west of the Korean Peninsula with high precision.

Kim Jong-un stated that North Korea is "steadily and limitlessly strengthening powerful, reliable nuclear deterrence capabilities," calling this the most important priority. He also reviewed plans to arm two subsequent Choe Hyon-class warships.

Pyongyang commonly uses the term "strategic" to refer to weapons capable of carrying nuclear warheads. North Korea first tested a strategic cruise missile with nuclear warhead capability in 9/2021.

The Choe Hyon is the first vessel of its class, featuring a 5,000-ton displacement, making it the largest in North Korean history. While North Korea designates it a destroyer, Western experts assess it as a heavy missile frigate with a displacement comparable to advanced warships in Europe.

The Choe Hyon was launched in 4/2025. The second vessel of this class, the Kang Kon, encountered an incident during its launch in 5/2025. After resolving the issue, North Korea launched the Kang Kon in 6/2025.

Choe Hyon-class ships were initially equipped with 74 vertical launch systems (VLS), arranged in two launcher clusters forward and aft of the superstructure. Western military experts later assessed that North Korea changed the configuration, reducing it to 68 VLS.

Leader Kim Jong-un and officials stand near the Choe Hyon destroyer on 12/4. Photo: KCNA

For comparison, the US Constellation-class frigate, whose development program was canceled, had only 32 Mark 41 launch tubes, while the Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, with a displacement of over 9,000 tons, is equipped with 90-96 tubes.

Nguyen Tien (According to KCNA, AFP, AP)