Kim Jong Un Accelerates Nuclear Weapons Production Despite No 'Call' to War

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has reaffirmed his commitment to accelerating his country’s nuclear capabilities at what he described as an ‘exponential’ rate. The statement was made during a visit to a new, undisclosed uranium enrichment facility. Kim said North Korea had succeeded in more than doubling its stockpile of nuclear material for weapons purposes over the past five years. He stressed that strengthening the nuclear arsenal was a top priority amid rising global security uncertainty. ‘The unpredictable long-term potential threats and crises increasingly highlight the urgency and responsibility of the historic mission to improve both the quality and quantity, and to continuously and rapidly strengthen the nuclear war deterrent,’ Kim was quoted as saying by KCNA. Photographs released by KCNA showed Kim and senior officials visiting the new uranium enrichment facility. A partially obscured image appeared to show Kim reviewing a nuclear warhead design during a meeting discussing the strengthening of North Korea’s nuclear deterrent capabilities. Pyongyang’s expansion of its nuclear weapons stockpile and delivery systems is occurring against the backdrop of deteriorating relations with South Korea. The North Korean government no longer recognises Seoul as a potential partner for future reunification of the Korean Peninsula. According to various open estimates, North Korea is currently believed to possess at least 60 nuclear warheads, a figure still far below the stockpiles of Russia and the United States, which each have more than 5,000. Some analysts believe North Korea is drawing lessons from conflicts involving non-nuclear allied states. The US strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June and ongoing tensions between Washington and Tehran are seen as reinforcing Kim’s conviction that nuclear weapons are the most effective deterrent against external military pressure. In addition to developing nuclear weapons, North Korea continues to strengthen its conventional military forces. According to a recent report by the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), the country has around 1.1 million active personnel, making it one of the largest armed forces in the world. North Korea’s military build-up has prompted the United States and its allies in the Asia-Pacific region to accelerate the development of missile defence systems, long-range strike capabilities, and hypersonic weapons technology. Arms control expert Daniel Salisbury from IISS assessed that Pyongyang’s weapons programme still leaves significant uncertainty regarding the scale of its ambitions. He noted that several public estimates suggest North Korea may have produced enough material for up to 90 nuclear warheads and has likely assembled around 50 units. International attention is also focused on a new uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon. The existence of this facility was first disclosed by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) about a year ago. IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi explained last June that the construction of the new facility was part of the expansion of North Korea’s nuclear programme at the Yongbyon complex, one of the country’s primary nuclear weapons research centres. Researchers from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, Jeffrey Lewis and Sam Lair, previously stated that North Korea continues to expand its enriched uranium production capacity by adding more centrifuges in a more efficient area. Lewis even estimated that the new facility seen in KCNA photos could double the production of highly enriched uranium. On the same day as the facility visit, Kim also led a key meeting on strengthening national nuclear capabilities. He stated that the government had set priorities to implement an ambitious plan aimed at increasing the nation’s nuclear might exponentially. ‘We have confirmed the order of priorities for implementing an ambitious future plan designed to strengthen our nation’s nuclear power at an exponential pace,’ Kim said. The statement emerged just weeks after the White House announced that US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, in a Beijing meeting, had reaffirmed their shared goal of achieving North Korea’s denuclearisation. However, signals from Pyongyang indicate the opposite direction. Last week, North Korea reiterated that its denuclearisation would ‘never happen’, a stance that demonstrates Kim is now more focused on strengthening strategic ties with Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin than reopening arms control talks with Washington.