U.S. ANALYZING N. KOREA’S MISSILE CLAIM

[Anchor Lead]

Regarding North Korea's shooting of strategic cruise missiles from a submarine, the U.S. said they're analyzing the details first. Washington also vowed to hold the North accountable for continuing to make threats in cooperation with its allies.

[Pkg]

The U.S. says it's analyzing the details of what North Korea claims to have been cruise missiles launched from a submarine on Sunday. The analysis focuses on the missiles' specifications and whether or not the North's claim is true that they flew 1,500 kilometers on a figure eight-shaped track and precisely hit the target. Saying that the regime has been upgrading its submarine-launched missiles since the first launch in 2016, the U.S. explained it is looking into the potential impact the latest missiles could have on the regime's military capabilities. Washington also stressed that Pyongyang's action to disrupt security on the Korean Peninsula is unacceptable.

[Soundbite] Jake Sullivan(U.S. Nat’l Security Advisor)

The U.S. is viewing the launches as North Korea's protest against the South Korea-U.S. Freedom Shield drills, which kicked off on Monday. The U.S. says the two allies' military cooperation will remain unaffected. Washington also vowed to hold the North accountable for continuing to make threats in cooperation with allies.

[Soundbite] Ned Price(U.S. State Dept. Spokesperson)

Meanwhile, the U.S. disclosed the details of its 2024 defense budget worth 842 billion dollars and announced plans to strengthen its nuclear capability and missile defense system. It also made clear that the largest-ever defense budget is also to gain predominance over China in a military modernization race.