Kim Jong Un announces plans to modernize North Korea's defense sector, Reuters reports
Photo: Kim Jong Un (Getty Images)
North Korea intends to continue developing its missile capabilities over the next five years, reflecting a strategy aimed at strengthening military deterrence and modernizing the country’s defense industry, according to Reuters.
During visits to major defense-sector facilities in the final quarter of 2025, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un emphasized the primacy of missile and artillery production for national security.
Missile capability development
According to the state news agency KCNA, Kim said the country’s missile and munitions manufacturing sector "is of paramount importance in bolstering war deterrent." He reaffirmed Pyongyang’s strategic focus on expanding its military capabilities and continuing missile development programs.
Industrial modernization and five-year plan
Kim approved draft plans to modernize key defense-industry enterprises, which are to be presented at a party congress scheduled for early 2026. KCNA said the congress will also review a five-year development plan aimed at further bolstering military capabilities and upgrading weapons technologies.
The announcement follows Kim’s recent oversight of a long-range surface-to-air missile test on December 24 near the country’s east coast. KCNA reported the test evaluated strategic technologies for a new class of high-altitude missiles that successfully hit aerial targets at a range of 200 kilometers.
North Korea has also begun construction of its first nuclear-powered submarine equipped with strategic guided missiles. The 8,700-ton vessel is expected to carry new "secret" underwater weapons, significantly expanding Pyongyang’s maritime deterrence, according to state media.
Separately, analysts have said Russia may have provided technical assistance to North Korea’s submarine program in exchange for military support related to the war in Ukraine. Hong Min, an expert on the North Korean military at the Korea Institute for National Unification, said Pyongyang could have received critical technologies from Moscow to accelerate the development of its undersea fleet.
