North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to rapidly expand his country’s nuclear arsenal, citing ongoing United States-South Korea military exercises as a sign of “hostile intent”.
According to state media, Kim made the remarks during a visit to a naval destroyer, where he condemned the drills as “an obvious expression of their will to provoke war”.
The annual Ulchi Freedom Shield drills, which began this week, combine large-scale field manoeuvres with upgraded responses to North Korea’s growing nuclear capabilities.
Kim Jong Un’s threat signals that North Korea is gearing up for a potential war with its southern neighbor, which could quickly spiral out of control and draw in major powers like the US and China.
The exercises will run for 11 days, with half of the 40 field training events rescheduled to September. South Korean officials claim the adjustment reflects President Lee Jae Myung’s call to lower tensions, though analysts doubt Pyongyang will respond positively.
North Korea’s nuclear ambitions are advancing rapidly, with estimates suggesting the country may have produced enough fissile material for up to 90 nuclear warheads, although the number actually assembled is likely closer to 50.
Alongside its nuclear programme, Pyongyang is also advancing its naval capabilities, aiming to complete construction of a third 5,000-tonne Choe Hyon-class destroyer by October next year, and testing cruise and anti-air missiles for the vessels.
According to Hong Min, an analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul, “Through this move, North Korea is demonstrating its refusal to accept denuclearisation and the will to irreversibly upgrade nuclear weapons”.
North Korea’s position is expected to feature in talks between US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee in Washington later this month, with efforts to curb Pyongyang’s nuclear ambitions high on the agenda.
The region has been a flashpoint since the 1953 Korean War, which, in theory, continues, as the two warring sides never signed a peace deal.
Kim Jong Un’s threat comes after he and President Vladimir Putin signed a treaty that gave security guarantees to Belarus, Moscow’s closest ally, including the possible use of Russian nuclear weapons to help repel any aggression.
The pact followed Moscow’s revision of its nuclear doctrine, which for the first time placed Belarus under the Russian nuclear umbrella amid tensions with the West over the conflict in Ukraine.