SEOUL | North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has reiterated that Pyongyang may have a “preventive” use of nuclear weapons to counter hostile forces, state media reported on Saturday.
• Read also: At military parade, Kim says he wants to ‘strengthen’ North Korean nuclear weapons
To ‘maintain the absolute superiority’ of North Korea’s armed forces, the country must be able to ‘contain and pre-emptively thwart all dangerous attempts and threats…if necessary’, the leader told senior officers , according to the official KCNA news agency.
Pyongyang must continue to develop its arsenal in order to have an “overwhelming military force that no power in the world can provoke”, said Kim Jong Un.
It is the “lifeline guaranteeing the security of our country”, according to him.
During an imposing military parade on April 25, he had affirmed that he might have recourse to the nuclear arsenal if the “fundamental interests” of North Korea were threatened.
Kim Jong Un reiterated these remarks during a meeting with senior officers whose work he wanted to commend during the April 25 military parade, organized as part of the 90th anniversary of the People’s Revolutionary Army of Korea.
On this occasion, the most powerful intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBM) were presented.
Despite severe international sanctions, North Korea continues to modernize its army.
Since the start of the year, Pyongyuang has carried out more than a dozen test launches, including launching a long-range intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) for the first time since 2017.
The country continues to ignore Washington’s proposals to resume negotiations.
The North Korean leader’s remarks might be aimed at South Korea’s new president-elect, conservative Yoon Suk-yeol, who will take office on May 10, analysts say.
Mr. Yoon promised to take a tougher line in the face of provocations from the North.
Analysts say Kim Jong Un’s warnings show he is not open to dialogue with Seoul’s new government.
“Mr. Kim’s remarks demonstrate that he does not want to engage with Mr. Yoon’s new administration or reinitiate denuclearization talks with the United States,” said Leif-Eric Easley, professor of international studies at the University. Ewha University in Seoul.
