August 20, 2025
SEOUL – North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Monday called for a “rapid expansion of nuclearization” and denounced regular military exercises by South Korea and the US as a clear display of “most hostile and confrontational” intent toward Pyongyang.
This was notably Kim’s first public message since South Korean President Lee Jae Myung extended an overture for inter-Korean reconciliation and pledged to pursue a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula in his Aug. 15 speech marking the 80th National Liberation Day.
North Korean state media on Tuesday reported Kim’s on-site visit to the regime’s brand-new destroyer Choe Hyon docked at the Nampo Shipyard on the west coast of North Korea.
Kim’s inspection coincided with the first day of Ulchi Freedom Shield — an annual combined military exercise conducted by South Korea and the US from Monday through Aug. 25.
“Comrade Kim Jong-un affirmed that the US–Korea combined military exercises, once again carried out from today, constitute a clear expression of position that openly shows their intent to be most hostile and confrontational toward the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” the Rodong Sinmun, an organ of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea, said in a front-page Korean-language report. The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea is the official name of North Korea.
Kim also claimed that “the gravity (of the combined exercises) has further increased as the two attempt military collusion that includes nuclear elements,” and underscored that “this evolving situation demands that we respond with proactive and overwhelming change,” according to the report.
“Comrade Kim Jong-un, while reiterating his earlier emphasis, stated that the security environment facing our state is becoming more serious with each passing day, and that the situation requires us to undertake a decisive and rapid change in existing military theory and practice, as well as a radical expansion of nuclearization,” North Korea’s main newspaper reported.
Kim also signaled North Korea’s intransigence in pressing ahead with its nuclear program.
“Comrade Kim Jong-un declared that important measures for the accelerated growth of national defense capabilities will certainly continue to be taken, and that our firm will and capability to defend the sovereignty and security of the country will be expressed through practical action,” the Rodong Sinmun reported.
In response, South Korea’s Unification Ministry reiterated Tuesday that the “Korea–US combined military exercises are of a defensive nature aimed at protecting the lives and safety of the people.”
“We once again make clear that there is no intent to attack North Korea or to heighten tensions on the Korean Peninsula,” a senior Unification Ministry official said on condition of anonymity. “With regard to Chairman Kim Jong-un’s remark about strengthening nuclear capabilities, our position is contained in our celebratory address.”
In his Aug. 15 speech, President Lee underscored his goal of establishing a peaceful, “nuclear-free Korean Peninsula,” while admitting that “denuclearization is a complex and very challenging task that cannot be resolved in the short term.”
Choi Il, a retired South Korean navy captain and now head of South Korea’s Submarine Research Institute, pointed out that “Kim Jong-un’s visit to the destroyer Choe Hyon on Aug. 18 — when the vessel was docked and no special event was taking place — clearly reflected a political intention.”
Choi underscored the significance of “Kim referring to the exercises and stressing nuclear armament aboard the destroyer Choe Hyon on the first day of the Korea–US combined UFS exercises.”
Hong Min, a senior research fellow at the government-funded Korea Institute for National Unification, explained North Korean media coverage of Kim’s on-site visit was mainly a “low-key response” to the ROK–US combined exercises.
“This response can be considered low-key in form and is difficult to view as a direct provocation or stimulus, since it did not involve an actual missile launch or a comparable action,” Hong said. “Yet in substance, it conveys a strong message, as it was a visit demonstrating the (North Korean) navy’s nuclear armament and signaling the intent for future force deployment.”
Hong further explained that the other major goal is to “demonstrate the non-acceptance of denuclearization and the irreversible will for the advancement of nuclear weapons” before the first summit between South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and US President Donald Trump on Aug. 25.
Pyongyang’s response appears intended as a preemptive move ahead of the Lee-Trump summit, where North Korea’s denuclearization and the allies’ approach are expected to be discussed and announced in a joint statement.
“Rather than direct provocation, the focus appears to have been on sending a message that strongly highlights the rejection of the principle of denuclearization by showcasing mid- to long-term prospects for naval nuclear armament and the expansion of nuclear weapon launch platforms,” Hong explained.
dagyumji@heraldcorp.com
