North Korean leader orders strengthening of deterrence force

Seoul (agencies)

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un directed the strengthening of his country’s defense capabilities, when concluding a key meeting of the ruling party with senior military officials, amid fears that his country might conduct a nuclear test, official media revealed.
The meeting was closely watched, with speculation growing that Pyongyang could conduct its first nuclear test in five years, which US and South Korean officials said could take place “at any time.” Yesterday, the Korean Central News Agency reported that Kim chaired the three-day expanded meeting of the Eighth Central Military Commission, where senior officials discussed and agreed “on an important issue related to providing a military guarantee to strengthen the country’s deterrence force during wars.”
The IAEA report did not directly refer to North Korea’s nuclear or ballistic missile program, but said that Ri Pyong-chul, who leads the country’s missile development, was elected vice-chairman of the party’s Central Military Commission.
“Kim stressed the need for the entire army to strengthen strong self-defense capabilities by all means to defeat any hostile forces,” the agency said. North Korea this year tested an unprecedented number of ballistic missiles, including ICBMs, new hypersonic missiles and a short-range missile potentially designed for tactical nuclear weapons.