South Korean Defense Minister An Gyu-baek told parliament yesterday that North Korea has likely received technical support from Russia as part of its efforts to develop its submarine capabilities.

He added that “it is too early to conclude that Pyongyang has conducted a ballistic missile launch test from a submarine.”

North Korea is committed to developing submarines capable of launching ballistic missiles and has tested launching such missiles from underwater platforms, but it is unclear whether Pyongyang has acquired sufficient capability to launch missiles from submarines.

North Korea is also seeking to develop nuclear-powered submarines.