North Korea tested an unmanned submersible capable of carrying a nuclear warhead in 2023. KCNA/VNA Photo

SEOUL — North Korea has test-fired a new type of torpedo in the East Sea (known internationally as Sea of Japan), state media reported on Tuesday, saying it plans to deploy the system with its Navy in early 2027.

The Academy of Defense Sciences, the Missile Administration and the Torpedo Weapon Research Bureau "verified the combat effectiveness" of the new high-speed torpedo system on Monday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

The test was part of the "obligatory activities" of the defence research institutes to put weapons technology "on a highly-developed basis," it added.

The North gave no further details of the torpedo's specifications but said the test confirmed "the core technology for raising the efficiency of propulsion and the performance of rocket propulsion device," which it said was perfected through "more than 180 rounds of different tests over the past five years."

South Korea's unification ministry official told reporters Tuesday the test appears aimed at "showing off its strengthened naval power and improved underwater weapons systems that the North has been emphasising lately."

Since Pyongyang's state media offered neither specifications nor photos, the official said more analysis is needed to learn about the new torpedo.

Pyongyang has been pushing to strengthen its naval capabilities with a string of weapons tests.

Last month, it conducted an underwater test of a new high-speed, precision-guided torpedo that uses artificial intelligence (AI) technology, calling it a "significant" change in its naval capabilities. It also fired two types of strategic cruise missiles from what was presumed to be a 3,000-ton submarine in the East Sea.

In June, it commissioned the 5,000-ton Choe Hyon destroyer in the Yellow Sea, followed by the 5,000-ton Kang Kon destroyer in the East Sea in September.

At the Choe Hyon's commissioning ceremony in June, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said the Navy "is rising into a full-fledged service equipped with strategic means as the program of equipping the Navy with nuclear weapons is following its planned course unerringly." — YONHAP