Kim Jong Un boosts weapons as US-South Korea prepare military drills

Days after asking the military to prepare for the possibility of war, North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un has ordered a drastic increase in weapons production, the state media reported on Monday.

Kim carried out an inspection of major munition factories, including a tactical missile production plant and mobile launch platforms, over the weekend.

"The qualitative level of war preparations depends on the development of the munitions industry and the factory bears a very important responsibility in speeding up the war preparations of the Korean People's Army," Kim said, according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

"Our army must thoroughly secure overwhelming military power and solid readiness to handle any war at any time, so that the enemy does not dare to use force, and would be annihilated if it does," Kim said.

He further stated that there is an urgent need to boost the production of large-calibre multiple rocket launcher shells "at an exponential rate."

The call for an exponential increase in weapons production comes just days after Kim Jong Un asked his generals to prepare for war. The North Korean leader also exhorted the military leadership to expand military drills.

He asked the army to "more thoroughly gird for a war given the grave political and military situation prevailing in the Korean Peninsula." It needs to be noted that Kim Jong Un's call for war preparedness may be a message for the United States and South Korea. The two countries are set to hold military drills between August 21 and 24.

According to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), tens of thousands of troops from both sides will be taking part in the exercises.

"The exercises are an essential element in maintaining robust combined defence posture in case of emergency - absolutely necessary to respond to the growing military threat from North Korea," JCS spokesman Col. Lee Sung-jun said in a press briefing.

The development has not gone down too well with the North Korean leader, who has threatened to counter the US military moves with the "most overwhelming nuclear force." North Korea calls these exercises "frantic" drills "simulating an all-out war against" Pyongyang.

Earlier this year, Kim Jong Un issued a statement condemning the military drills, saying that the US and its allies have reached an "extreme red line." It even threatened to turn the peninsula into a "huge war arsenal and a more critical war zone."

However, North Korea's objections have not stopped Washington and Seoul from intensifying defence cooperation and staging joint military exercises.

South Korea and the United States have increased joint military exercises as North Korea continues to conduct weapon tests despite UN sanctions. In February, North Korea launched a long-range ballistic missile into the sea off its east coast as a response to the upcoming US-South Korea military drills.

It said that the intercontinental ballistic missile was test-fired as a warning to the US and South Korea. It also warned of an "unprecedentedly" strong response if the two countries continued with the drills.

"I warn that we will watch every movement of the enemy and take corresponding and very powerful and overwhelming counteraction against its every move hostile to us," North Korea spokeswoman and Kim's sister, Kim Yo Jong had said then.

Kim has been displaying his collection of powerful, destructive missiles, which he uses to defend his supremacy. North Korea's capacity to launch nuclear strikes has grown to the point where there are calls to declare Pyongyang a nuclear weapons state.

It has been carrying out banned weapons tests to increase its nuclear and missile arsenals. Last year, it launched more than 70 ballistic missiles to carry out test launches of its biggest missiles, including banned nuclear-capable intercontinental missiles.