The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) launched a railway-borne missile Wednesday with a mission to strike the target area 800 km away, the official Korean Central News Agency reported Thursday.

"The test firing drill took place for the purpose of confirming the practicality of the railway-borne missile system deployed for action for the first time, of judging the combat readiness and capability of performing firepower duty of the newly-organized regiment all of a sudden and of attaining proficiency in the action procedures in case of fighting an actual war," the report said.