Kim Jong Un announced plans to exponentially enhance North Korea's nuclear weapons, having more than doubled the production of weapons-grade nuclear material over the past five years, emphasizing a refusal to abandon the nuclear arsenal despite facing pressure.
On 4 June 2026 GMT+7, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that Kim Jong Un, North Korea's Supreme Leader, declared a plan to rapidly expand the country's nuclear weapons capability following a more than twofold increase in the production of weapons-grade nuclear material over the past five years.
During a visit to a new nuclear material production facility, Kim Jong Un confirmed an ambitious future goal to increase the country's nuclear strength at an exponential rate. He described this as a remarkable and highly successful transformation, difficult to express in words, marking a historic milestone in rapidly advancing North Korea's nuclear capabilities.
Previously, North Korea withdrew from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1993 and has conducted six nuclear tests, resulting in multiple rounds of sanctions by the United Nations Security Council. Security experts currently estimate that North Korea possesses several dozen nuclear warheads, although the North Korean government has never officially disclosed the exact numbers.
North Korea views nuclear weapons as essential to national security to deter threats from South Korea and U.S. forces stationed on the Korean Peninsula. Over the years, North Korea has rejected demands from the United States and the international community to end its nuclear program, maintaining that its possession of nuclear weapons is an irreversible policy.
Source: CNA