North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has ordered his military to accelerate preparations for war in response to what he calls “unprecedented confrontational moves” by the United States. This announcement comes as a defiance of international sanctions and amid a record year of weapons testing by Pyongyang.
During an ongoing meeting of the country’s ruling Workers’ Party, Kim directed the People’s Army and the munitions industry, nuclear weapons, and civil defense sectors to ramp up war preparations in response to the growing tension with the US. The state news agency did not provide specifics on the preparations but emphasized that the “military situation” on the Korean peninsula had become “extreme.”
The decision follows a year of heightened political and defense cooperation between South Korea, Japan, and the US in response to a series of record-breaking weapons tests by North Korea. Furthermore, the United Nations atomic agency reported that a second reactor at North Korea’s Yongbyon nuclear facility appeared to be operational, a development that it described as “deeply regrettable.”
In addition to the military escalation, North Korea has been deepening ties with Moscow, with Kim stating that Pyongyang would further expand strategic cooperation with “anti-imperialist independent” countries. This comes after Kim made a rare trip outside of North Korea to meet Russian leader Vladimir Putin in the Russian Far East. The visit sparked concerns that Pyongyang might be supplying military equipment to Moscow for use in its war with Ukraine in exchange for Russian technological know-how.
Amidst the military and political developments, Kim also laid out economic goals for 2024, emphasizing the importance of agriculture and the country’s five-year development plan. North Korea has suffered from food shortages in recent years, and the prolonged border closures during the COVID-19 pandemic have worsened food security in the country.
The comments from Kim Jong Un suggest that North Korea is unlikely to slow the pace of its weapons tests or military modernization. Although some analysts believe that the country aims to build leverage for future diplomacy, the prospects for nuclear talks with the US remain uncertain after the collapse of high-stakes summits with former President Donald Trump in 2019. The North has been under UN Security Council sanctions since its first nuclear test in 2006, and tensions with the US are expected to continue as the world watches Pyongyang’s next moves.