North Korea's Chief of the General Staff, Pak Su Il, has been dismissed and replaced by General Ri Yong Gil, a former defence minister. Kim made the comments at a meeting of the Central Military Commission, which discussed plans for countermeasures to deter North Korea's enemies. South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported that North Korea appears "focused on flexing its military muscle."
The agenda of the meeting between Kim and the Central Military Commission was "the issue of making full war preparations" including "securing more powerful strike means" to ensure "perfect military readiness for a war." Kim called for mass-production of various weapons and equipment and actively conducted war drills to efficiently operate the newly deployed latest weapons and equipment. According to KCNA, Kim set a target for expansion of the country's weapons production capacity.
The call for increased arms production comes as the United States suspects North Korea of providing weapons to Russia for its war in Ukraine, including artillery shells, rockets, and missiles. Russia and North Korea have denied those claims. Kim visited weapons factories last week and called for more missile engines, artillery, and other weapons to be built.
North Korea is set to stage a militia parade on September 9 to mark the 75th anniversary of the Day of the Foundation of the Republic. The United States and South Korea are scheduled to hold their next military drills between August 21 and 24, North Korea claims such exercises are a threat to its security and are conducted in preparation for a future invasion of the north.
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