Kim Jong Un warns that North Korea would 'preemptively' use nuclear weapons

SEOUL: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un warned yet again that the North could preemptively use its nuclear weapons if threatened, as he praised his top military officials over the staging of a massive military parade in the capital Pyongyang this week.

Kim expressed “firm will” to continue developing his nuclear-armed military so that it could “preemptively and thoroughly contain and frustrate all dangerous attempts and threatening moves, including ever-escalating nuclear threats from hostile forces, if necessary”, North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency said on Saturday (Apr 30).

KCNA said Kim called his military officials to praise their work on Monday’s parade, where North Korea showcased the biggest weapons in its military's nuclear program, including intercontinental ballistic missiles that could potentially reach the US and a variety of shorter-range solid-fuel missiles that pose a growing threat to South Korea and Japan. KCNA did not say when the meeting took place.

The parade marking the 90th anniversary of North Korea’s army came as Kim revives nuclear brinkmanship aimed at forcing the United States to accept the idea of his country as a nuclear power and remove crippling economic sanctions.

Speaking to thousands of troops and spectators mobilised for the event, Kim vowed to develop his nuclear forces at the “fastest possible speed” and threatened to use them if provoked. He said his nukes would “never be confined to the single mission of war deterrent” in situations where the North faces external threats to its unspecified "fundamental interests".