The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) test-fired a new type of surface-to-sea missile Padasuri-6 on Wednesday, with its top leader supervising the move, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Thursday.

The missile flew over the waters off the country's east coast for more than 1,400 seconds before hitting the target boat, the KCNA report said.

Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, "set forth the ways for reliably defending the maritime border by deploying surface-to-sea missile forces in the forward area and strengthening them to the maximum and thoroughly containing and frustrating the adventurous attempt of enemy navy," the report said.

Kim stressed the need for the DPRK to "thoroughly defend the maritime sovereignty by force of arms and actions, not by any rhetoric, statement and public notice," it added.

(Cover: The DPRK fired several cruise missiles off the east coast on Wednesday. South Korean citizens watch related news in the waiting room of Seoul Station, Seoul, South Korea, February 14, 2024. /CFP)