Kim Jong Un vows to expand nuclear arsenal amid rising tensions

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has announced that the country is advancing its nuclear force construction policy, aiming to increase its arsenal “exponentially,” according to a report by state media KCNA on Tuesday.

In a speech delivered during North Korea’s founding anniversary on Monday, Kim emphasized the need for the nation to rigorously enhance its nuclear capabilities and ensure its readiness to deploy them at any moment to safeguard the state’s security. “We must be thoroughly prepared to use our nuclear capability properly at any given time,” Kim stated, emphasizing the strategic importance of nuclear weapons in facing “the various threats posed by the United States and its followers.”

Kim further asserted that North Korea is under a “grave threat” from what it perceives as a U.S.-led nuclear-based military bloc in the region, heightening the regime’s resolve to bolster its military defenses.

In response to Pyongyang’s escalating rhetoric and recent missile activities, South Korea’s Deputy Defense Minister for Policy, Cho Chang-rae, along with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts, convened in Seoul on Tuesday to condemn North Korea’s diversification of nuclear delivery systems and its continued ballistic missile tests.

The officials reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening trilateral cooperation to ensure regional peace and stability, as outlined in a joint statement released by the U.S. State Department.

The three nations also agreed to conduct a second trilateral military exercise, known as Freedom Edge, in the near future, further solidifying their defensive posture against North Korea’s growing threats.

Additionally, South Korea is set to host a defense ministerial meeting with the member states of the United Nations Command (UNC) on Tuesday. The UNC, led by the U.S. military commander stationed in South Korea, plays a crucial role in monitoring and policing the heavily fortified border with North Korea.

Germany recently joined the UNC, committing to defend South Korea in the event of a conflict. This move has drawn sharp criticism from North Korea, which denounced the UNC as an “illegal war organization” and accused Germany’s entry into the U.S.-led UN border monitoring force of further escalating tensions in the region.

Credit: CNN