North Korea's Kim Jong-un inspects shipyard
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un visits the Nampo Shipyard in North Korea in this picture released by the Korean Central News Agency on Feb 2, 2024.
PHOTO: KCNA via Reuters
PUBLISHED ONFebruary 02, 2024 1:47 AM
SEOUL — North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspected a shipyard and underscored the importance of a strong naval force in "war preparations", state media KCNA said on Friday (Feb 2).
Kim's visit is being made public after North Korea tested its new submarine-launched cruise missiles (SLCM) on Sunday, firing an upgraded missile for the second time in a week and accelerating its navy's nuclear armament, according to state media.
"Strengthening naval force is the most important issue in pushing ahead with war preparations", KCNA cited Kim as saying during his visit to Nampho dockyard, a military shipbuilding base also referred to as Nampo.
Kim was briefed on various warship constructions for a new "huge plan" decided by the North Korean leadership, KCNA said, without elaborating.
KCNA said on Monday that Kim had inspected the construction of a nuclear submarine and discussed issues related to the manufacturing of other types of new warships, but gave no details.
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