DPRK's Nuclear Deterrence for Self-Defence Is Just: KCNA Commentary

Pyongyang, January 5 (KCNA) -- Countries have become earnest recently in their moves to bolster a strategic nuclear force to cope with the U.S. nuclear threats.
    On Dec. 22 last year, Russian President Putin called for increasing military potentials of strategic nuclear force and securing missile attack capabilities enough to reliably cope with any missile defence system at present and in the future so as to contain the U.S. nuclear threat to Russia.
    The Chinese Huan Qui Shibao in a commentary on Dec. 23 noted that China has already become the first strategic rival of the U.S. and that most of its pressure has transferred to China step by step, adding that the table can be turned only when China's power of strategic nuclear threat becomes enough to overwhelm the U.S. It stressed that if the U.S. aircraft carrier becomes a stage for attacking China, that has to be made to certainly face the fate of sinking.
    This proves that those countries regard the bolstering of strategic nuclear force as an issue vital to protecting their independent development and peace from the U.S. increased nuclear threat and blackmail.
    Today the global instability and the danger of nuclear war increase day by day due to the U.S. reckless nuclear arms buildup and modernization moves. To cope with this, nuclear weapons states are increasing their own strategic nuclear force in quality and quantity.
    Typically, the U.S. is furthering the role of the components of its nuclear force in its NATO military strategy. About 200 U.S. nuclear bombs are already deployed in Turkey, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands and Italy and 310 carriers are on standby.
    Russia is updating triad strategic nuclear weapons system, an expression of its intent to maintain its position as a power and an exercise of its strategic power to contain NATO.
    According to 2016 Moscow review of Russia's armed forces, launching devices that have already been put on an alert amount to 99 percent in missile units of Russia and over 96 percent of them are on constant standby for launch at a moment's notice.
    A total of 41 new-type ballistic missiles have been put into commission, making the percentage of the modern weaponry of nuclear triad reach 60.
    Russia claims in 2017 three units equipped with modern weapons will additionally be deployed in Russia's nuclear missile units and the air force will be provided with five modern strategic bombers.
    China is putting spurs to developing update strategic nuclear missiles including Dongfeng-41, reaffirming its stand never to make a concession in such issues as building nuclear threat.
    Such countries boasting of vast territory, big population and immense economic potentials have made it a top priority for state development and security to bolster their own nuclear forces.
    It is quite natural for the DPRK, a country that has constantly been exposed to direct nuclear threat from the U.S., to bolster a nuclear deterrence.
    The nuclear threat to the DPRK by the U.S. is so immense incomparable with that exposed to big power around it.
    For more than half a century the U.S. has continued nuclear threat and blackmail against the DPRK, putting the biggest political and military pressure, applying the harshest sanctions and resorting to desperate moves to stifle it.
    To cope with this, the DPRK carried out its first H-bomb test and conducted test-fire of various attack means and succeeded in explosion test of nuclear warhead. The preparations for the test-fire of inter-continental ballistic missile have reached the final phase. These signal achievements in the field of strategic nuclear force clearly prove that the DPRK has now possessed of powerful strategic nuclear attack means capable of responding to any form of war to be imposed by the U.S.
    It is quite just for the DPRK to have had access and bolstered nuclear deterrence for self-defence in the face of the U.S. reckless hostile moves and open nuclear threat.
    Building strategic nuclear force to ensure one's own security and maintaining balance of force will remain core interests of countries in the future, too. -0-