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North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for a rapid expansion of the country’s naval combat power as Pyongyang warned Wednesday that continued U.S. “hostility” would trigger stronger countermeasures, state media reported.
Kim made the remarks during a visit Monday to the Nampho shipyard, where he inspected a new warship under construction and received a briefing on upgrades at the facility, according to the Korean Central News Agency.
“It is vital and important requirement of the times to rapidly bolster up the surface and underwater combat power for defending the national sovereignty in the sea under various threats,” Kim said.
He said the regional security environment and what he called hostile acts by North Korea’s adversaries demonstrated the need for “the most developed and powerful warship.”
State media did not disclose the vessel’s specifications, saying only that it was designed to carry out complex operational missions in modern warfare.
Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, meanwhile, said dialogue with Washington remained an option for peace but was not necessarily in North Korea’s national interest.
“It is our clear stand that we have no need to sit face to face with such unreliable and hostile persons who refuse to abandon their policy of confrontation while talking about dialogue,” she said.
Kim Yo Jong cited U.S.-South Korean military exercises, Washington’s demands for North Korea’s denuclearization and U.S. allegations linking Pyongyang to the theft of more than $6 billion from cryptocurrency exchange Binance.
She rejected the hacking accusation as a “grave political provocation” and said Washington’s abandonment of what Pyongyang considers its hostile policy was the key condition for resolving disputes.
“In the present reality when new records are being set in the implementation of the U.S. hostile policy toward the DPRK, it is natural that new records should be created in our reflective counteraction,” she said, without specifying what measures could follow.
U.S. President Donald Trump took a more cautious position on the Binance allegations, saying Washington was still examining the case and would speak with North Korea if its involvement was confirmed.
Binance said attackers stole $6.34 billion during an approximately four-hour operation on Oct. 29, with about $2.85 billion later frozen.
South Korea’s military said North Korea also fired multiple missiles toward the East Sea early Wednesday from the Sondok area of South Hamgyong province.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff said Seoul was working with the U.S. to determine the missiles’ specifications and impact locations, including whether different types had been launched simultaneously.
“Our military is monitoring the North’s various movements under a robust South Korea-U.S. combined defense posture, and maintains the capabilities and readiness to respond overwhelmingly to any provocations,” it said.
U.S. Pacific Command said it was monitoring the launches and consulting with allies and partners.
“Based on current assessments, this event does not pose an immediate threat to U.S. personnel or territory, or to our allies,” the command said.
North Korea had also tested a cluster warhead designed for tactical ballistic missiles on Saturday.
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