DPRK leader calls for heightened missile production
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DPRK leader Kim Jong tours important weapons factories and urges a substantial rise in missile manufacturing.
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DPRK leader Kim Jong Un is seen in an armored combat vehicle, which he took for a test drive. (KCNA via KNS/AFP)
DPRK leader Kim Jong Un has visited crucial weapons factories and called for a significant increase in missile production, as reported by state media.
The inspections involved visits to factories producing tactical missiles, rocket launcher shells, and armored combat vehicles. Kim expressed satisfaction with the progress made in these facilities and set a goal to enhance missile production capacity.
"He set forth an important goal to drastically boost the existing missile production capacity" and underlined the factory's role in "speeding up" war preparations, KCNA said.
The DPRK leader emphasized the factories' roles in expediting war preparations. He also stressed the importance of increasing shell production and personally tested an armored combat vehicle.
Additionally, he inspected a factory producing transporter erector launchers, underscoring the significance of mobile platforms. Kim highlighted the need for a powerful military force capable of annihilating any enemy attack.
These inspections coincide with upcoming joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States, which DPRK considers as potential invasion rehearsals.
In yet another provocation, leaders from South Korea, the United States, and Japan are planning a trilateral summit to strengthen security cooperation. The US and South Korea have been conducting joint military exercises in the Peninsula for decades, but, in recent years, they have increased the scale of their drills, simulating large-scale bombing against the DPRK. Kim had previously called for more aggressive war preparations, including heightened weapons production and drills, during a meeting with military officials.
Kim walks Shoigu through DPRK's newest, most advanced weaponry
It is worth noting that at the end of July, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu held a meeting with the DPRK's leader in Pyongyang, during which the two sides discussed security and defense issues.
A Russian delegation led by Shoigu arrived in the DPRK on a three-day visit at the invitation of Pyongyang's Defense Ministry to participate in the 70th anniversary of the signing of the July 27, 1953, Korean War armistice, which ended open hostilities and is celebrated as Victory Day.
The news agency indicated that Shoigu and Kim discussed "matters of mutual concern in the field of national defense and security and on the regional and international security environment," pointing out that both sides' positions on the files discussed were in line.
The DPRK state media revealed that Kim gave the Russian Defense Minister a tour of the country's newest and most advanced weaponry.
Read next: DPRK says Russia will 'emerge victorious' stressing support for Moscow
