Kim Jong-un Will Accelerate Steps To Make North Korea A Nuclear Adidaya Country

Kim Jong-un when he met the North Korean military. (Source: KCNA)

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said his country would speed up its move to become a military superpower with nuclear weapons, not rule out the possibility of using it if attacked by enemies, state news agency KCNA reported on Tuesday.

Kim's leader for the second time in a week mentioned the name of South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol when criticizing Seoul for colluding with Washington to destabilize the area, in order to cover up the fact Seoul doesn't even have adequate strategic weapons.

"Yoon Suk-yeol made inappropriate and vulgar comments about the end of the Republic in his speech, and it shows that he is truly dominated by his blind belief in the power of his army," KCNA quoted Kim as saying, referring to the South Korean alliance with the United States.

"To be honest, we have absolutely no intention of attacking South Korea," he said in a speech at Kim Jong-un's National Defense University, a training ground for elite military specialists.

"Every time I state our position on the use of military force, I clearly and consistently use the 'if' qualification. If the enemy tries to use force against our country, the Republican military will use all offensive forces without hesitation. This does not hinder the use of nuclear weapons," he said.

"Our move towards becoming a military superpower and nuclear power will be even faster," he added.

North Korea has been running nuclear weapons programs for decades and is believed to have enough fissile material to build dozens of weapons.

Pyongyang itself has conducted six underground nuclear detonation tests.

Last week, South Korea commemorated Armed Forces Day with a military parade showing off ballistic missiles with large warhead capacities, featuring US strategic bombers.

In his speech at the event, President Yoon warned North Korea against using nuclear weapons.

"That day will be the end of the North Korean regime," he warned if Pyongyang used nuclear weapons.

KCNA said Leader Kim delivered a statement "military superpower" on Monday, the same day North Korea said the Supreme People's Assembly would meet to discuss amendments to the country's constitution. The news agency has not mentioned the assembly's deliberation since Monday.

The hearing was closely watched because it was likely to agree to constitutional amendments, to reflect Leader Kim's statement that unification is unlikely and South Korea is a separate and "main enemy."

Separately, North Korea may be building a new submarine, South Korea's Ministry of Defense quoted intelligence indications in a report to lawmakers. In January, Kim's camp reportedly ordered the construction of a nuclear submarine.

Construction is still in its early stages and it is unclear whether the ship is a nuclear-powered submarine, the report said.

North Korea is also working on an unmanned submarine that can be developed to carry nuclear weapons, perhaps with the help of Russia, he added.