9/5/2025–|Last update: 10:47 (Mecca time)
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised new military exercises that mimic counter -attacks against targets in South Korea and the United States, the official media in North Korea announced on Friday morning.
The Korean Central News Agency said that the exercises aimed to test the speed of transition to the nuclear response mode, and included the implementation of “detailed operating measures” for a counter -nuclear attack, as part of what Pyongyang described as a “deterrent response” to the joint military exercises conducted by the American and South Korean forces in the region.
The maneuvers included the launch of a new ballistic ballistic missile, “Hoasonggo-11-Ka”, as well as a multiple 600 mm missile launcher system, which is classified by the South Korean army as a ball because of its guidelines and self-payment.
According to the agency, the “reliability of the driving and packing system” that allows a rapid response to any potential nuclear emergency, noting that the experiments “achieved its entire goals.”
An invitation to increase nuclear readiness
Pyongyang official media stressed that Kim personally supervised the training, and stressed the need for the nuclear force to play a pivotal role in deterrence strategies and wars, calling for “strengthening the accuracy of strikes and raising combat readiness.”
Kim also called, in comments published later, to increase the production of artillery shells, in what appears to be a direct response to the growing military partnership with Russia, especially in the context of the ongoing war in Ukraine.
These exercises came after North Korea launched several short -range ballistic missiles yesterday, Thursday, from an area near the eastern coastal city of Wonsan towards the Sea of the East, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff in South Korea.
The South Korean army emphasized that the launches included various systems of mobile ballistic missiles, similar to the Russian “Iskandar” regime, and linking these experiments to the possibility of using them as a display of arms exports to Russia.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_ybiwh5-dc
Regional and international reactions
On the other hand, a South Korean Ministry of Unity spokeswoman Kim Enai said that the firing of the missiles represents a “serious provocative act”, violates the decisions of the UN Security Council and threatens regional peace.
For its part, Japan confirmed that the missiles did not reach its pure economic zone, but it had provided a strongly worded diplomatic protest through the North Korean embassy in Beijing, according to the Japanese Defense Minister.
These developments come in light of the escalation of tensions on the Korean peninsula, as Pyongyang continues to accelerate the development of its nuclear and missile programs, amid increasing accusations of providing Russia with weapons in its war against Ukraine.
Last April, North Korea revealed a new naval destroyer with a weight of 5,000 tons, which is likely to be equipped with tactical nuclear missiles, enhancing the country’s nuclear aspirations by air by air and sea.
It is noteworthy that the two Koreas are still officially in a war since 1953, when a peace treaty was not signed after the Korean war ended, but rather a truce. The relations between Pyongyang and Soul have reached its lowest levels in years, as the North Korean missile experiences have increased in flagrant violation of the United Nations sanctions.
