North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has said the country must continue strengthening its nuclear capabilities to deal with what he described as an increasingly unstable global security environment.
Speaking at a meeting of the ruling Workers' Party, Kim argued that maintaining and expanding North Korea's nuclear forces was the only reliable way to respond to growing international tensions.
He accused the United States of fuelling conflicts in Europe and the Middle East and claimed Washington and South Korea were increasing military pressure on Pyongyang.
According to state news agency KCNA, Kim said: "To steadily expand and strengthen the nuclear forces ... and to thoroughly exercise the position of a nuclear weapons state is the most correct and unique way" to deal with an increasingly complex security situation.
He also called for greater investment in conventional weapons and ordered faster construction of a 10,000-ton guided missile cruiser.
The remarks are likely to reinforce concerns that North Korea has no intention of returning to denuclearisation talks. Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, said Pyongyang was once again signalling that "denuclearisation talks are off the table".
Instead, Yang said North Korea appears willing to negotiate only as a recognised nuclear power, potentially focusing on arms control rather than dismantling its weapons programme.
Alongside military issues, Kim highlighted plans to modernise the country's coal industry and improve mining communities.
Yang noted that coal remains North Korea's main source of energy and that upgrading the sector could help ease long-standing power shortages.
A Kyiv-Warsaw train was struck near the Polish border, Ukraine's state railway firm said on Sunday. No passengers were injured. Ukrai...
Maritime trackers received new reports of an attack on a ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, according to the ...
Indonesian rescuers are searching for 130 people after a passenger ship carrying 243 people sank in the Java Sea following bad weather, while 113 p...
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the weekend BRICS summit, amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, joining a host of foreign dignitaries.
Saudi Arabia has temporarily shut down its 1,200-kilometre East-West oil pipeline after it was hit by a drone attack, with Riyadh and Baghdad saying the strike originated from Iraq.
Mexico and the U.S. are racing to secure a trade deal before the U.S. midterm elections in less than eight weeks, according to six sources familiar with the talks, with failed negotiations between Washington and Canada adding urgency.
Dubai’s property market has spent years climbing. Now, for the first time since 2021, prices are moving in the opposite direction.
Maritime trackers received new reports of an attack on a ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), adding to concerns about energy supplies after Saudi Arabia shut down a vital oil pipeline on Saturday.
A Kyiv-Warsaw train was struck near the Polish border, Ukraine's state railway firm said on Sunday. No passengers were injured. Ukrainian Railways said that the country's railways were facing systematic attacks for a second day and warned of widespread delays.
Indonesian rescuers are searching for 130 people after a passenger ship carrying 243 people sank in the Java Sea following bad weather, while 113 people have been evacuated and six have died, the country’s search and rescue agency said on Sunday.
China will lead the creation of an open source platform among BRICS members to promote cooperation on large language models, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Sunday.
Swedes vote in an election on Sunday (13 September) that could see the far-right enter government for the first time if the country's right-wing parties can form a majority.
Philippine rescuers recovered 41 more charred remains from a ferry fire on Saturday (12 September), taking the death toll to 76, while 13 people remained unaccounted for as forensic teams worked to identify the victims.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment