North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said his country plans to have the world’s most powerful nuclear force, boosting dozens of troops involved in the recent launch of a new ballistic missile, state media reported on Sunday, citing Reuters.

The announcement came after Pyongyang’s leader inspected a Nov. 18 test of the Hwasong-17, North Korea’s largest intercontinental ballistic missile, and vowed to counter what he called US nuclear threats.

“North Korea’s ultimate goal is to possess the most powerful strategic force in the world, unprecedented absolute power in this century,” Kim Jong-un said in the order promoting the officers, adding that the development of the country’s nuclear potential will reliably protect the dignity and sovereignty of the state and people.

“We have the most powerful strategic weapon in the world”

He said the Hwasong-17 is “the world’s most powerful strategic weapon” and that it demonstrates North Korea’s determination and ability to eventually build the world’s most powerful military.

North Korean scientists have made an “amazing leap in the development of technology for installing nuclear warheads on ballistic missiles” and are expected to expand and strengthen the country’s nuclear deterrent at an extremely rapid pace, Kim said. , according to North Korean state media. .

Kim Jong-un posed for photos with scientists, engineers and military personnel involved in the test.

According to state media, the workers vowed to defend the party’s and leader’s “absolute power” in Pyongyang and vowed that “our missiles will fly vigorously only in the direction indicated” by Kim Jong-un.

The reaction of the United States

The launch of a Hwasong-17 missile capable of reaching the US mainland prompted the United States to seek a UN Security Council statement to hold North Korea accountable for its missile tests, which are prohibited by Security Council resolutions.

State media also reported that Kim Jong Un’s daughter accompanied him as he inspected the launch of a “new type” of intercontinental ballistic missiles.

Hwasong-17 missile, “hero of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea”

North Korea’s powerful Standing Committee of the Supreme People’s Assembly awarded the Hwasong-17 missile with the title of “Hero of the DPRK and the Gold Star Medal and Order of the National Flag First Class,” state news agency KCNA said, using the initials of the country’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

“(The missile) clearly proved to the world that the DPRK is a full-fledged nuclear power capable of countering the nuclear superiority of the US imperialists, and fully demonstrated its strength as the most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile power,” KCNA said.