Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has threatened to accelerate the expansion of his country’s nuclear arsenal, condemning ongoing United States-South Korea military exercises as a sign of ‘hostile intent,’ according to state media. Kim, who made the remarks during a visit to a naval destroyer, called the drills ‘an obvious expression of their will to provoke war,’ according to a report published on Tuesday. He insisted North Korea must ‘rapidly expand’ its nuclear weapons programme, pointing to the inclusion of what he called ‘nuclear elements’ in the drills.” (08/19/25)