North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has visited missile bases to assess their preparedness to undertake actions of “strategic deterrence”.
U.S. Nuclear Capabilities A Growing Threat
Kim Jong Un described U.S. nuclear capabilities as a growing threat to the country, state media reported on Wednesday.
The U.S. strategic nuclear arsenal poses an “ever-increasing threat” to North Korea’s security environment, which demands that Pyongyang maintain a strict counteraction posture of its nuclear forces, he was quoted as saying by KCNA.
North Korea has been stepping up its development of ballistic missiles and a nuclear arsenal, drawing international sanctions, and forming close military relations with Russia.
Tensions With South Korea And Its Allies
Kim’s visit to the bases comes amid growing tensions with South Korea and its allies.
This has included concerns over what Seoul says is a dispatch of North Korean troops to Russia to fight in Ukraine, a claim that has been denied by Pyongyang.
Concern Over Pyongyang’s Military Cooperation With Moscow
South Korea’s National Security Adviser Shin Won-sik and Jacek Siewiera, the head of the Polish National Security Bureau, expressed concern over Pyongyang’s military cooperation with Moscow during a meeting in Seoul.
The two also agreed to cooperate closely with the international community on the issue, according to a statement released by South Korea’s presidential office.
Kim Calls for Modernisation Of Armed Forces
In the KCNA report, Kim also called for the modernisation of the armed forces by giving priority to strategic missiles in the future, calling it “an important principle of the strategy for building national defence.”
Kim Accompanied By His Sister
He was accompanied on his visit by Kim Yo Jong, his powerful sister, and Kim Jong Sik, the first vice department director of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea,
KCNA reported.
Photographs released by KCNA showed Kim dressed in a leather coat inspecting the missile bases.
KCNA did not specify when the visits took place.
