Kim Jong Un Pushes for Faster Weapons Development in North Korea
SEOUL — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un vowed to accelerate his country’s weapons development, citing military modernization efforts by South Korea and the United States that he said are pushing the region “to the brink of a nuclear war.”
Speaking at a three‑day Workers’ Party meeting that concluded Monday, Kim said Pyongyang’s policy is to “beef up the national defense capabilities faster” and expand its nuclear deterrent. State media KCNA quoted him as saying that US‑South Korean moves, including plans for Seoul to acquire a nuclear submarine, are driving instability.
Analysts see the rhetoric as a justification for strengthening nuclear capabilities. Hong Min of the Korea Institute for National Unification said the language “effectively shuts down any room for denuclearization talks and treats the irreversibility of its nuclear status as a fait accompli.”
Pyongyang has declared itself an “irreversible” nuclear state since the collapse of Kim’s 2019 summit with then‑President Trump. Kim’s sister recently called the nuclear policy a “line of no retreat.”
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said last week that Trump told him it was time to “pay attention to the North Korea issue,” and that Lee had argued sanctions are “ineffective.” Trump agreed, Lee added.
The two Koreas remain technically at war, as their 1950‑53 conflict ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty. Pyongyang is under multiple UN sanctions over its nuclear program.
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