North Korea Nuclear Arsenal: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un ordered an “exponential” expansion of his country’s nuclear arsenal and the development of a new, more powerful intercontinental ballistic missile, state media reported on Sunday, following a record number of missile firings. Last year after entering 2023 with the weapon test.
Kim’s moves are in line with the broader direction of his nuclear weapons development program as he has repeatedly vowed to boost both the quality and quantity of his arsenal.
Some experts said Kim would likely continue testing weapons this year before eventually trying to use his increased arsenal to win concessions such as sanctions relief in future dealings with his rivals.
“They are now keen to isolate (North Korea) and isolate it unprecedentedly in human history,” Kim said at a recently concluded ruling party meeting, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
“The current situation calls for renewed efforts to increase military strength in order to fully guarantee the sovereignty, security and fundamental interests of the (country).”
Kim accused South Korea of being “bent on manufacturing irrational and dangerous weapons” and openly flaunted its preparations for war with North Korea. KCNA said that, Kim said, highlighted the need to mass-produce tactical nuclear weapons in the battlefield and called for a “rapid increase in the country’s nuclear arsenal”.
North will develop another ICBM system
Kim has also set the task of developing another ICBM system whose main mission is rapid nuclear retaliatory strike, KCNA said. Japan is pushing for setting up a regional military bloc like NATO.
Tactical nuclear weapons and a military reconnaissance satellite are among the weapons systems Kim has vowed to introduce in recent years. Other weapons it wants to include include a multi-warhead missile, a more agile solid-fuelled ICBM, an underwater-launched nuclear missile and a hypersonic weapon.
External concerns about North Korea’s nuclear program have grown since North Korea approved a new law last year that authorizes the retroactive use of nuclear weapons under a wide range of circumstances and openly demonstrated its nuclear weapons first. Threatens to use
Growing nuclear threats from the North prompt the US and South Korea to expand their regular drills
Kim reiterated that threat during his speech at a party meeting. “(Kim’s report) made it clear that our nuclear force regards it as the first mission to prevent war and safeguard peace and stability. However, if it fails to intercept, it will complete a second mission, which will not be for defense,” KCNA said.
Growing nuclear threats from the North have prompted the United States and South Korea to expand their regular exercises and strengthen trilateral security cooperation involving Japan. The US military has warned that any nuclear strike by North Korea against the United States or its allies and partners “will result in the end of that regime.”
“It was during his 2018 New Year’s speech that (Kim) first ordered mass production of armaments and ballistic missiles, and he is doubling that quantitative expansion target in the coming year,” said Ankit Panda, an expert at the Carnegie Endowment. international peace.
Panda said the reference to a new ICBM appears to be related to a solid propellant system. “We should expect to see tests of larger, solid propellant missiles soon,” he said. Last month, North Korea said Kim supervised the test of a “high-thrust solid-fuel motor” for a new strategic weapon. Experts say the weapon refers to a solid-fueled ICBM, which can be launched more quickly than liquid-fueled ICBMs because the fuel is already loaded into the solid-propellant rocket. All of North Korea’s previously tested ICBMs use liquid propellant.
Earlier on Sunday, South Korea’s military detected a missile launch from the North’s capital region. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement that the missile traveled about 400 kilometers (250 miles) before splashing down in the waters between the Korean Peninsula and Japan.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff called the launch a “grave provocation” that harms peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and around the world. It said South Korea closely monitors North Korean moves in coordination with the United States and stands ready to deal with any provocations.
The US Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement that the launch highlights the “destabilizing effect” of North Korea’s illegal weapons programs. It added that the US’ commitment to the defense of South Korea and Japan remains “ironclad”.
North Korea tested more than 70 missiles last year. The North’s testing spree indicated that the country was ready to advance its nuclear program, although whether or not the country had operational nuclear missiles remains a source of external debate.
North Korea fires three short-range ballistic missiles towards its eastern waters
On Saturday, North Korea fired three short-range ballistic missiles towards its eastern waters. North Korea’s state media confirmed on Sunday that the country tested its super-large multiple rocket launcher to test the weapon’s capability. KCNA said three shells fired from the launcher on Saturday hit an island off the country’s east coast. It said North Korea fired another shell from the launcher on Sunday towards its eastern waters.
According to KCNA, Kim Jong Un said the rocket launcher put the whole of South Korea within striking distance and is capable of carrying a tactical nuclear warhead. Outside experts classify launcher-fired warheads as ballistic missiles because of their trajectory, range, and other characteristics.
North Korea’s missile launches came for the second day in a row after South Korea on Friday conducted a rocket test related to its plan to set up space-based surveillance to better monitor North Korea. On Friday, South Korea’s military said it tested a solid-fuel rocket, a type of space launch vehicle it plans to use to put its first spy satellite into orbit in the coming years. Is.
Hostilities between the rival Koreas have deepened since early last week when South Korea accused North Korea of flying drones across the country’s heavily fortified border for the first time in five years and sent its own drones toward the North.
South Korea admitted it failed to shoot down any of five North Korean drones detected south of the border. But South Korea has vowed to strengthen its air defense network and get tough on future provocations by North Korea.
(with inputs from AP)