In comments published Saturday, Kim said North Korea is continuing its armaments to deter the United States, comments that appear to show President Donald Trump’s strategy of high-level involvement with Pyongyang – including three historical personal encounters between Trump and Kim – failed to convince Pyongyang to abandon its hunt for a modern nuclear arsenal.
“No matter who is in power in the US, the true nature and spirit of anti-North Korean policies will never change,” Kim said, according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).
“The development of nuclear weapons is being pushed forward without interruption.”
The projects are in various stages of development, according to Kim. He said “multiple warhead guidance technology” is in its final stages, while studies in hypersonic flight that can be applied to new ballistic missiles are “complete,” while North Korea “prepares for their test and production” – a possible sign that Pyongyang is about to resume type of missile testing against Washington and Seoul.
Improvements in tactical nuclear weapons – which are intended for shorter range use and are often less destructive than strategic nuclear weapons – are also being finalized, Kim said. Nuclear research on submarines seems to be the least advanced. The investigation into these subs has been completed and is in “the final stages of the investigation,” Kim said.
Experts say the Kim regime has long pursued these technologies to improve the quality and durability of its nuclear weapons. A nuclear-powered submarine would be particularly useful from a deterrence standpoint, as it would increase North Korea’s “second strike” capability – its ability to survive an adversary’s initial nuclear strike and respond in kind.
“I wouldn’t even expect a prototype naval nuclear reactor in North Korea, but their interest in the technology is not surprising,” said Ankit Panda, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and an expert on North’s nuclear program. -Korea.
Panda said Kim’s interest in tactical or low-efficiency nuclear weapons made sense, even though they can be “very inefficient in using nuclear fuel,” which is not easy for North Korea to come by.
“North Korea’s interest in these weapons is not surprising from a strategic point of view – they actually complement Kim’s preferred nuclear strategy,” said Panda, author of “Kim Jong Un and the Bomb: Survival and Deterrence in North. Korea.”
Panda said North Korea likely wants these tactical nuclear weapons to combat a possible conventional domestic invasion. That way, Kim was able to maintain his extended-range strategic nuclear weapons “in retaliation against the US and civilian centers in Japan and South Korea if the US and allies continue after that initial nuclear use.”
“Kim’s interest in tactical nuclear weapons is very similar to Pakistan’s: use them early to reduce mobilization by a conventionally superior neighbor,” he said.
Kim’s comments were delivered to the country’s key political leaders, gathered in Pyongyang for the Eighth Congress of the Workers’ Party – a high-level gathering where the country’s rulers gather to reflect on successes and failures in recent years. and set an agenda for the future. These gatherings are usually held every five years, but Kim’s father and predecessor – Kim Jong Il – stopped after 1980. Kim Jong Un brought them back to life in 2016.
North Korea’s fledgling economy is probably the most important topic on the domestic agenda. Kim admitted in August that his economic plans devised for the Seventh Workers’ Party had failed and promised to do better. However, sanctions, natural disasters and the Covid-19 pandemic have pushed the North Korean economy into free fall, and experts are unsure how things can improve without major reforms.
Kim’s plans to develop his nuclear arsenal and modernize his conventional arsenal comprise most of the address. He promised North Korea would be a responsible nuclear force committed to a “no-first-use nuclear weapons” policy.
“As a responsible nuclear force, North Korea will not misuse nuclear weapons unless invasive enemy forces try to use them,” Kim said.
While Kim said the continued proliferation of nuclear and conventional weapons “does not preclude diplomacy,” he warned opponents against any “attempt to violate the country’s highest interests and dignity.”
The comments targeting the United States are Kim’s first to publicly target President-elect Joe Biden, and indicate that Pyongyang may not be keen to negotiate in the early days of the new government.
Kim said the key to establishing a new relationship between North Korea and the United States requires the US to end its “hostility policy” towards Pyongyang, which North Korea often defines as Washington’s alliance with South Korea. , his dedication to protecting South Korea under the US “nuclear umbrella,” and the deployment of US forces in East Asia.
However, Biden has made it clear that his foreign policy strategy involves strengthening ties with allies who have felt abandoned by Trump, who viewed the partnerships as being transactional in nature.
South Korea’s Ministry of Unification said Seoul would not change its policy on denuclearization or inter-Korean peace in response to Kim’s comments.
“South Korea hopes that talks between North Korea and the United States can resume as soon as possible as the start of a new government,” the ministry said in a statement.
But the Biden administration may be forced to address this sooner than it would like, as North Korea conducted provocative missile tests during the first 100 days of both the Trump and Obama administrations.