North Korean leader Kim Jong Un orders the expansion of his country's nuclear arsenal and the development of a new intercontinental ballistic missile amid rising tensions with the South and the United States.
During a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party, Kim underscored the nation's need to secure "overwhelming military power" in order to defend its sovereignty and security. The discussions happened amid cross-border tensions following last week's intrusion by North Korean drones into South Korea's territory and the former's series of missile launches, including ICBMs.
Kim Jong Un Orders Expansion of Nuclear Arsenal
On the other hand, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, during phone calls with military chiefs, urged "solid mental readiness and practical training." It was an attempt to ensure that any North Korean provocations will be met with retaliation.
However, Kim Jong Un accused Seoul and Washington of trying to "isolate and stifle" Pyongyang with US nuclear strike assets that were constantly deployed in the South, calling it "unprecedented" in human history.
The North Korean leader also vowed to develop another ICBM system with the primary objective of being capable of a quick nuclear counter-strike. It was under a plan that sought to bolster the nation's nuclear arsenal, as per Reuters.
The official KCNA news agency said that the prevailing situation called for making redoubled efforts to "overwhelmingly beef up the military muscle in response to the worrying military moves by the U.S. and other hostile forces."
Kim Jong Un noted that South Korea has become the North's "undoubted enemy," adding that it was "hell-bent" on imprudent and dangerous arms buildup. The North Korean leader said that the situation highlights the importance and necessity of the mass production of tactical nuclear weapons and an exponential increase in nuclear weaponry.
According to CNN, the North Korean leader's remarks came shortly after the country twice over the weekend tested what authorities claimed was a large, nuclear-capable, multiple-launch rocket system. They added that it was capable of putting all of South Korea in its range, said a report from KCNA.
Rising Global Tensions
Kim spoke on New Year's Eve on the last day of a six-day plenary session that reviewed the last year. He said that the South's main ally, the United States, increased pressure on the North to the "maximum" level by frequently deploying military assets to the Korean Peninsula.
The North Korean leader's comments come at the end of a year that saw his regime test more missiles than at any time in the history of the country, including an ICBM that, theoretically, is capable of striking the US mainland.
North Korea fired at least three short-range ballistic missiles on Saturday from a site south of Pyongyang on its 37th day of missile tests in 2022. The tests were followed by another test on Sunday.
A security analyst at the California-based RAND Corporation, Soo Kim, said that Kim's identification of the South as an enemy and mention of the US's alleged hostility is a "reliable pretext for the regime to produce more missiles and weapons to solidify the leader's negotiating position and cement his country's status as a nuclear weapons power, CNBC reported.
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