North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called for rapid expansion of nuclear buildup after US and South Korean joint military drills.
According to Reuters, North Korea’s state agency, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), on Tuesday, August 19, reported that Kim said that the country needs to boost its nuclear capabilities.
He also declared South Korea and US military exercises an "obvious expression of their will to provoke war” and will “to remain most hostile and confrontational.”
Kim emphasised that the current security situation demands that North Korea should "rapidly expand" its nuclear armament, noting that US and South Korean drills also included a "nuclear element."
South Korea this week, along with its ally the US, started 11-day annual military drills called Ulchi Freedom Shield. The exercises included testing an enhanced response to the increased nuclear threats from North Korea.
The military drills are similar in scale to Washington and Seoul’s exercises last year,but 20 out of 40 field training events have been rescheduled to September.
Pyongyang often blasts these drills as practice for an invasion and has even sometimes responded with weapons tests.
It is expected that US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung will discuss strategies to address North Korea's nuclear weapons development during their upcoming summit in Washington next week.
