North Korea says it tested a cruise missile system, its third known weapons display this year, and vowed “the toughest” response to what it called the escalation of U.S.

SEOUL - North Korea conducted a strategic cruise missile test on Saturday (Jan 25), state media KCNA reported on Sunday. The country's leader Kim Jong Un oversaw the test, according to the report, which described it as a test-fire of an "important weapon system.

The moves suggested North Korea will likely maintain its run of weapons tests and its confrontational stance against the US.

North Korea test-fired strategic cruise missiles Saturday as the Lunar New Year holidays began in South Korea, North’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported early Sunday.