Kim Jong-un has said North Korea intends to have the world’s most powerful nuclear force, as the leader was again photographed with his daughter inspecting troops and an intercontinental ballistic missile.
“North Korea’s ultimate goal is to possess the most powerful strategic force in the world, absolute force unprecedented in the century,” Kim said in an order promoting dozens of military officers involved in last weekend’s launch of a new ballistic missile, state media reported. sunday
He described the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) as “the world’s strongest strategic weapon” and said it demonstrated North Korea’s determination and ability to eventually build the world’s strongest military, which would protect reliably the dignity and sovereignty of the state and the people.
State media also showed Kim being accompanied on a military review by his daughter, whose existence had never been publicly confirmed before last weekend’s Hwasong-17 test. Ju Ae is estimated to be about 12 or 13 years old, meaning that in four to five years he will be preparing to go to college or serve in the military, Michael Madden, an expert on North Korean leadership at the Stimson Center of Washington. , he said last week.
State news agency KCNA described her as Kim’s “dearest” or “precious” child, a more honorific title than its previous description of Kim’s “beloved” child in its dispatch last week.
His second appearance will raise the possibility that leadership of the totalitarian state could pass to a fourth generation of Kims.
Kim Jong-un and his daughter pose with soldiers for a photo in front of what state media say is a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile, at an unidentified location in North Korea. Photograph: í©ëNí êMé–/AP
According to experts, Kim is believed to have up to three children: two girls and a boy. Some observers believed that one of these children was seen in the footage of the national holiday celebrations in September.
In Sunday’s report, Kim also said North Korean scientists had made a “great leap forward in developing the technology to mount nuclear warheads on ballistic missiles” and were expected to expand and strengthen the nuclear deterrent of the country at an extraordinarily rapid rate. .
Kim Jong-un has promoted a number of personnel involved in the test-fire of the Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile last weekend. Photo: KCNA/Reuters
Kim was pictured in photos posing with scientists, engineers and military officers involved in the test.
According to state media, these workers pledged to uphold the “absolute authority” of the party and Kim, and vowed that “our missiles will fly strongly only in the direction indicated” by Kim.
Capable of reaching the North American continent, the launch of the Hwasong-17 on November 19 prompted the US to request a presidential statement from the UN Security Council to hold North Korea accountable for its tests of missiles, which are prohibited by resolutions of the security council.
The Hwasong-17 missile was awarded the title of “Hero of the DPRK and Gold Star Medal and Order of the National Flag First Class” by the powerful Standing Committee of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly. state news agency KCNA reported in another statement, using the country’s initials. official name, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
“[The missile] It clearly demonstrated to the world that the DPRK is a full-fledged nuclear power capable of opposing the nuclear supremacy of US imperialists and fully demonstrated its power as the most powerful ICBM state,” KCNA said.
With Reuters