Summary The South's defence ministry said the North had tested three short-range missiles
SEOUL (AFP) - North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has hailed the firing of a new anti-ship rocket as "another fresh milestone" in bolstering the country s naval power following the testing of a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM).
Kim watched the test of the "highly intelligent" rockets to be deployed at naval units, Pyongyang s KCNA news agency reported on Monday.
He "noted with great pleasure that it marked another fresh milestone in bolstering up the Juche (self-reliance)-based naval force", it said.
"Ultra-modern strike means of Korean style have been studied and developed one after another recently to completely contain the hostile forces," Kim was quoted as saying.
The South s defence ministry said the North had tested three short-range missiles with a range of nearly 100 kilometres (62 miles) Sunday off its east coast.
"North Korea appears to be developing new missiles that would replace its old Soviet-designed anti-ship missiles," ministry spokesman Kim Min-Seok told reporters.
The test was the latest since Pyongyang claimed on May 9 it had successfully test-fired an SLBM -- a technology that could eventually offer the nuclear-armed state a survivable second-strike capability.
A fully developed SLBM capability would take the North Korean nuclear threat to a new level, allowing deployment far beyond the Korean peninsula.
But some experts have questioned the authenticity of the May test, saying photos of the launch might have been digitally manipulated.
