Kim Jong Un holds rocket launch ceremony
Actually, North Korea is currently facing severe flooding. For Kim Jong Un, this is an opportunity to ceremonially hand over hundreds of rocket launchers to the army. Before the military, the dictator outlines his future plans: more nuclear weapons.
North Korea is reinforcing its troops at the border with South Korea with 250 ballistic rocket launchers. As reported by the state news agency KCNA, a ceremony was held on Sunday under the chairmanship of Kim Jong Un in the capital Pyongyang, where 250 tactical ballistic rocket launchers of a new type were handed over to military units at the border.
The rocket launchers are a "modern tactical attack weapon" and a "powerful, valuable sword" for defending North Korea's sovereignty, Kim said at the ceremony, adding that he had personally designed them. Presenting the new weapons at a time when North Korea is struggling with severe flooding is an "expression of our party's firm will to advance the strengthening of defense capabilities."
In the near future, North Korea will strengthen its nuclear readiness to deter nuclear threats and protect against any challenges, Kim said before the armed forces and military scientists. He reaffirmed his stance that the accumulation and improvement of the country's nuclear weapons is the best way to counter what he sees as challenges and pressure from the US. Peace will be guaranteed by "absolute and incomparable self-defense capability."
Expansion of the Atomic Program
North Korea has consistently expanded its missile and nuclear weapons program despite international sanctions in recent years. The US and its allies in the region demand a complete nuclear disarmament.
According to South Korean expert Han Kwon Hee from the Korean Association for Defense Industry Studies, this is the first time North Korea has publicly announced the scale of a weapons transfer to its border troops. Each launcher can carry four rockets, Han said.
Relations between North and South Korea are currently at a low point. Kim Jong Un has declared South Korea the "main enemy" of Pyongyang and announced plans to expand the development of weapons, including tactical nuclear weapons. North Korea also threatens to fight for even "0.001 millimeter" of disputed territory. In response, South Korea and the US have strengthened their defense cooperation.
North Korea's decision to reinforce its border troops with new rocket launchers comes amidst the country's ongoing struggle with severe flooding. Despite the natural calamity, North Korea continues to prioritize its military expansion, as evidenced by Kim Jong Un's handover of 250 tactical ballistic rocket launchers to its border troops.
