North Korean media reported Friday that the country has built a "tactical nuclear attack submarine" as part of its effort to strengthen its naval force.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un presided over the unveiling ceremony Wednesday, saying the new sub was part of a "push forward with the nuclear weaponisation of the Navy in the future", KCNA reported.
The launching of the submarine, named the Hero Kim Kun Ok, "heralded the beginning of a new chapter for bolstering up the naval force of the DPRK", according to the report from KCNA.
During the festive ceremony that involved confetti and balloons, Kim stressed "the strategic and tactical plan to continuously enhance the modernity of underwater and surface forces and push forward with the nuclear weaponization of the Navy in the future", North Korean state media reported.
On Thursday, Kim inspected the submarine as it was preparing for a test cruise.
"Saying that to arm the navy with nuclear weapons arises as an urgent task... he stressed the need to enable the Navy to successfully carry out its strategic duty by hastening the transfer of underwater and surface vessels equipped with tactical nuclear weapons to the Navy", Kim was quoted as saying by KCNA.
Tensions have been on the rise recently as the US and its allies in the region — South Korea and Japan — have ramped up their military cooperation to face any threat from North Korea.
Earlier Sunday, Kim Jong Un's country conducted a simulated nuclear missile attack to signal a "nuclear war danger" to the US.
According to KCNA, North Korea launched several cruise missiles, some of which were equipped with imitation nuclear warheads, in an exercise that mimicked a "tactical nuclear attack."
The purpose of the exercise was to serve as a stark warning to potential adversaries regarding the genuine threat of nuclear conflict.
The missile exercise took place at dawn on the preceding Saturday and involved the deployment of "two long-range strategic cruise missiles with mock nuclear warheads."
North Korea framed this simulated nuclear attack as a response to joint military exercises conducted by the United States and South Korea earlier in the week.
The US and South Korea were criticised by the North for their "recklessness and dangerous nature of the confrontation hysteria," which it claimed were without historical precedent.
The military commission issued a "written drill order" that underscored the exercise's significance.
KCNA provided details on the execution of the missile exercise, highlighting that the missile sub-unit successfully executed its nuclear strike mission, simulating a flight pattern covering a distance of approximately 1,500 kilometres over 7.672 to 7.681 seconds.
The mock warheads were programmed to detonate at a pre-set altitude of 150 meters above the target island.
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