North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversees the launch of strategic cruise missiles during a visit to a naval unit on the east coast. (Photo: KCNA via KNS/AFP)

Mr. Kim visited a navy fleet stationed on the east coast to oversee the test aboard a warship, KCNA said, without specifying the date of his trip.

The launch aimed to verify the "combat function of the ship and the feature of its missile system", while improving sailors' capability to carry out an "attack mission in actual war", KCNA said, adding that the ship's missile hit its target.

The latest missile test came as South Korea and the United States began the Ulchi Freedom Shield summer exercises on Monday, designed to enhance their joint responses to North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.