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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un promised to “strengthen and enhance” the country’s nuclear weapons during a speech at a high-profile military parade in Pyongyang on Tuesday, according to state media.
“We will continue to take actions to build and improve our nation’s nuclear capabilities as quickly as possible,” Kim stated, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
According to KCNA, Kim delivered the address late Monday at a parade commemorating the 90th anniversary of the creation of the Korean People’s Revolutionary Army in Pyongyang’s Kim Il Sung Square.
North Korea is subject to harsh international sanctions because of its nuclear weapons programme, and repeated efforts to persuade Kim to abandon it have failed.
Kim stated on Monday that the country’s nuclear weapons were a “symbol of national power” and that they should be varied.
“In preparation for the future’s difficult political and military environment, as well as all types of catastrophes,” he stated, “we will further develop our nuclear force at the fastest feasible pace.”
While North Korea’s nuclear weapons serve primarily as a deterrence, Kim stated that they may be used if the country’s “fundamental interests” were assaulted.
The military parade was generally expected to display the North’s most advanced arsenal, including the “monster” Hwasong-17 ICBM, as well as hypersonic and submarine-launched ballistic missiles.
According to KCNA, the parade did indeed include the Hwasong-17, which North Korea claims to have successfully tested on March 24.
“The crowd erupted in cheers, greatly happy to see the massive ICBM Hwasongpho-17, which soared into the sky on March 24 to demonstrate Juche Korea’s ultimate power and the leading importance of our Republic to the world,” KCNA reported.
The parade’s photographs have yet to be published by state media.
