At the weekend, North Korea's ruler Kim Jong Un announced the "mass production of nuclear weapons". In Seoul, the threat is received with concern. South Korean President Yoon wants to send a sign of strength.
South Korea and the United States are considering adding US nuclear weapons to their joint military exercises in the face of the growing threat from North Korea. "The nuclear weapons belong to the United States, but planning, information sharing, exercises and training should be carried out jointly by South Korea and the United States," South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol told the Chosun Ilbo newspaper. The government in Washington is "very positive" about this idea.
Tensions between North and South Korea have escalated over the past year due to the unusual number of North Korean missile launches. North Korea fired another short-range ballistic missile off its east coast on Sunday, after three on Saturday. North Korea's ruler Kim Jong Un wants to push his country's development into a powerful nuclear power. During a meeting of the ruling Labor Party, he stressed that North Korea needs an overwhelming military force to fight back against enemies, state media reported on Sunday.
What is needed is mass production of tactical nuclear weapons and an exponential increase in the nuclear arsenal. He accused the United States and South Korea of wanting to isolate and oppress North Korea. Looking at the US, Kim called for the development of more ICBMs. The main task of these weapon systems must be a rapid nuclear counterstrike. He declared South Korea to be "our undisputed enemy", which is arming itself dangerously.
Overall, North Korea tested more missiles in 2022 than ever before. The state news agency KCNA also reported that a new, nuclear-capable multiple rocket launcher had also been tested. According to the report, Kim described the device as a "central offensive weapon" with a range covering all of South Korea.
