Kim Jong Un Smiles as North Korea's Navy Is Armed with Nuclear Weapons

North Korea on Friday conducted a test of a warship involving the firing of sea-to-surface cruise missiles, with leader Kim Jong Un expressing pleasure that the navy will be equipped with nuclear weapons, according to KCNA reported by AFP. The test coincided with rising tensions in Western Asia after the United States and Israel launched strikes against Iran since February 28. Tehran has responded by hitting targets in Israel and Gulf states hosting US forces. KCNA said Kim Jong Un inspected a Choe Hyon-class destroyer, one of two 5,000-ton warships North Korea launched last year. He oversaw a ‘test’ of the ships’ performance on March 3. In the inspection, Kim claimed Pyongyang is in the process of arming the navy with nuclear weapons. ‘Arming the navy with nuclear weapons shows satisfactory progress,’ he said. He described it as an effort to safeguard maritime sovereignty, and said this had not been achieved before. ‘All these successes represent a radical shift in defending our maritime sovereignty, something we have not achieved for half a century,’ he added. Kim also oversaw the launch of the ship-to-sea cruise missile from the warship, with the test reportedly successful: ‘Conducted successfully,’ KCNA reported. The test followed Kim’s leadership of the ruling Workers’ Party congress, held every five years, where he updated military-building goals and vowed to respond firmly to any threat. North Korea conducted the test while its main adversary, the United States, was bombing Iran in a joint operation with Israel, an operation the United States said aimed to eliminate Tehran’s nuclear, missile and naval programmes. North Korea has previously condemned the US-Israel attack on Iran as ‘illegal aggression’ and has called the US ‘a gangster’. The Choe Hyon, one of two 5,000-ton destroyers owned by North Korea, was tested; a second destroyer launched last year and a third vessel under construction were inspected by Kim on March 4. Yang Moo Jin, a former president of the University of North Korea Studies, said Kim’s latest move appears to be a display of strength amid the ongoing Iran situation and ahead of the forthcoming South Korea–US joint drills.