North Korea has test-fired a new anti-ship cruise missile the official North Korean News Agency (KCNA) reported on Saturday.

According to the KCNA report, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was present to observe the testing of the “ultra-precision” rocket.

The official Rodong Sinmun newspaper published front-page photos of Kim watching a missile being fired. However, the state media outlets did not mention the time or location of the exercise.

State media: ‘cutting-edge anti-ship rocket'

State media described the missile tested as a "new type of cutting-edge anti-ship rocket" developed by North Korean scientists that will "bring a great change in the navy's defense of territorial waters".

Yang Uk, a Seoul-based security expert said the North Korean missile looked similar to Russia's KH-35 anti-ship missile, which has a range of about 130-140 kilometers (81-87 miles) and is capable of traveling at high speeds while staying close to the sea's surface.

Officials from the isolated state have made frequent trips to Russia over the past year, according to the Reuters news agency. North Korea began importing KH-35 missiles in the mid-2000s. According to Yang, the test-firing on Saturday suggests that the country has succeeded in producing missiles of a similar design domestically.

Flexing its muscles

The Associated Press cited Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, who said that Pyongyang was demonstrating its military capabilities ahead of next month's annual US-South Korean military drills, which Pyongyang sees as a rehearsal for war.

The US and South Korea have repeatedly said that the war games are defensive in nature, and that they have no intentions of attacking the North. Pyongyang told Washington last month that it was willing to stop its nuclear tests if Washington called off this year's exercises with South Korea. The allies, however, have refused to cancel the exercises.

ra/pfd (AP, AFP, Reuters)