Kim Jong Un orders 2.5-fold increase in missile production capacity within five years

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has directed a significant expansion of the country's missile production capabilities, aiming for a 2.5-fold increase within five years. The directive came during a visit to a major munitions factory, where Kim inspected missile production and reviewed plans.

According to the official Rodong Sinmun newspaper, Kim expressed satisfaction with the factory's fulfillment of its first-half weapons production targets. He then reviewed a report from the Missile General Bureau on expanding ballistic and cruise missile production capacity, ordering it to be submitted for deliberation.

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Our armed forces' operational and combat formations are being modified, and the demand for missiles will greatly increase accordingly. The issue of annually expanding the existing production capacity by 2.5 times within the five-year plan period to meet this demand is a crucially important task.

"The issue of annually expanding the existing production capacity by 2.5 times within the five-year plan period to meet the greatly increased demand for missiles in line with the modification of the operational and combat formations of our armed forces is a crucially important task," Kim stated. This echoes a similar directive from January, when he called for a 2.5-fold increase in production to equip units with tactical guided weapons.

The visit, which included several high-ranking military and party officials, highlights North Korea's continued focus on military development and its stated intention to bolster its arsenal in response to evolving strategic needs.

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To satisfy the equipment needs of each unit envisioned by the Ministry of National Defense and the General Staff, it is critically necessary to expand the current production capacity by about 2.5 times.