North Korea on Thursday unveiled a 600mm missile launcher capable of firing nuclear warheads. Leader Kim Jong-un is due to announce the next stages of Pyongyang's weapons and deterrence program, including its atomic component, during the power congress scheduled before the end of the month.
First modification: 02/19/2026 - 07:50
North Korea has equipped itself with a new multiple rocket launcher system with nuclear capacity, state media reported this Thursday, February 19, on the eve of a political congress in which the issue of weapons will take center stage.
On February 18, leader Kim Jong-un supervised the presentation of this imposing 600 mm missile launcher, capable of firing nuclear warheads, according to the official KCNA agency.
The system is "appropriate for a special attack, that is, to fulfill a strategic mission," he celebrated, using a common euphemism to refer to nuclear use.
The North Korean leader must reveal the next stages of Pyongyang's weapons and deterrence program, including the atomic component, during the power congress scheduled before the end of the month.
This event, considered the most important in the country, allows the Workers' Party to set national guidelines for the coming years. The previous congress took place in 2021.
"Reduce the target to ashes"
Photographs released by state media show dozens of launchers lined up in the square of the House of Culture in the capital, Pyongyang, where the meeting will be held.
In recent days, information has also circulated about the arrival of delegations. North Korea has not given the exact date of the congress, which will also address diplomatic and economic issues.
Read alsoNorth Korea tests hypersonic weapons systems before meeting between Seoul and Beijing
According to Hong Min, an analyst at the Korean Institute for National Unification, the system presented could fire projectiles with an estimated range of 400 kilometers, thus covering all of South Korea, which the North describes as its "most hostile enemy."
"Its main objective is to neutralize the combined air power of South Korea and the United States," he explained to AFP, noting that "a single salvo of four or five nuclear warheads could devastate an entire air base."
"There is no need to say more about its destructive power and military value," Kim Jong-un said of the missile launcher, which, according to him, can "reduce the target to ashes."
In recent months, the leader has ordered increased and modernized missile production, and Pyongyang has accelerated its weapons tests.
Read alsoNorth Korea: missile test destroyed targets 200 kilometers away
Analysts consider that this campaign seeks to improve its precision attack capabilities, challenge the United States and South Korea, as well as test weapons with the possibility of exporting to Russia, its ally.
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