North Korean state media has released photos of Kim Jong Un's tour of a major munitions factory, which he hailed as central to the country's military modernization, state media reported.
The inspection took place ahead of his trip to China, his first in over six years, to attend a military parade in Beijing.
Why It Matters
North Korea has steadily expanded its United Nations-sanctioned strategic weapons programs in recent years, developing ballistic missiles capable of reaching the continental United States, maneuverable hypersonic weapons, and systems designed to carry nuclear warheads.
North Korea's frequent missile tests have become a key driver of tensions with South Korea. Kim insists the arsenal is a guarantor of national security, pointing to North Korea-focused security cooperation among Washington, Seoul, and Tokyo.
Newsweek reached out to the North Korean embassy in Beijing, China, by email with a request for comment.
What To Know
During his tour of the munitions factory, Kim was briefed on a new fully automated production line with "various" types of missiles already in serial production, the Korean Central News Agency reported Monday.
The line integrates every stage of manufacturing -- materials preparation, airframe and component production, testing, and final assembly -- maximizing productivity and quality, according to the report.
Kim said the facility had met the targets set out in the country's Five-Year Plan adopted at the Workers' Party of Korea's Eighth Congress and significantly boosted the communist country's missile production capacity.
He also called on the industry to be ready to fulfill the new long-term production goals announced at the Ninth Party Congress, scheduled for next year.
The report did disclose the location of the plant, but South Korea's Yonhap News Agency said it appeared to be somewhere in Chagang, a province bordering China that's home to much of North Korea's munitions production.
Kim was joined on the visit by Jo Chun Ryong, a senior party secretary; Jang Chang Ha, head of the country's Missile Administration; as well as other party officials and defense industry managers.
What People Have Said
The U.S. Director of National Intelligence wrote in its 2025 threat report: "Kim will continue to prioritize efforts to build a more capable missile force -- from cruise missiles to ICBMs and hypersonic glide vehicles -- designed to evade U.S. and regional missile defenses, improve the North's precision strike capabilities, and put U.S. and allied forces at risk."
What's Next
On Wednesday, Kim is scheduled to attend a military parade in Beijing marking the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II in the Pacific and the "Chinese people's war of resistance against Japanese aggression," according to the Chinese foreign ministry.
Kim departed from the North Korean capital of Pyongyang on Monday afternoon on his specialized armored train and is expected to arrive in Beijing on Tuesday, Yonhap cited a source familiar with the matter as saying.
It will be his first in-person meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping since January 2019. Kremlin foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov told Russian media on Saturday that Kim will sit on Xi's left side during the parade, with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the place of honor on the right.
The gathering marks the first time the leaders of all three countries -- viewed by Washington as aligned against the U.S.-led international order -- will appear together in one place.